Vodacom Group rolled out 6,160 new 5G sites and 3,041 new 4G sites across its African footprint in the year to 31 March 2026, while the operator’s M-Pesa-led financial services arm crossed 103 million customers.
The South African mobile operator, which holds majority stakes in subsidiaries across South Africa, Tanzania, Mozambique, Lesotho and Vodafone Egypt, released its FY2026 annual results on 11 May 2026. The network and platform buildout was funded by R23.6 billion in capital expenditure.
Network: 9,200 new sites in 12 months
The 6,160 5G sites added during the year span Vodacom’s wholly-owned markets and its Safaricom-served footprint in Kenya and Ethiopia. The figure is the largest annual 5G site addition reported by an African operator group.
Smartphone penetration across the group reached 68.6%, with 18.8 million new smartphones activated during the year. Vodacom said its “beyond mobile” revenue, comprising fixed connectivity, financial services, digital, and Internet of Things services, reached R29.8 billion and now contributes 22.3% of group service revenue.
M-Pesa hits 103 million, target raised to 130 million
The financial-services customer base grew 17.4% to 103 million during FY2026, processing transaction value of $525.6 billion, up 16.6% on the prior year. Vodacom raised its Vision 2030 financial services target to 130 million customers, up from 120 million previously.
The platform’s growth follows a $28 million rebuild of M-Pesa on a next-generation platform in Tanzania earlier this year. M-Koba, the women-led savings-group product in Tanzania, also posted standout growth: 60% of M-Koba deposit volumes are now transacted by women members, Vodacom said.
Safaricom and Maziv deals reset the perimeter
Two strategic transactions closed during the year reshape Vodacom’s African scope. The operator moved to take a controlling stake in Safaricom in a $2.1 billion transaction in December 2025, subject to a Kenyan court process. Closing will lift Vodacom’s fibre homes-passed footprint to roughly 3.6 million.
Separately, Vodacom finalised its strategic stake in Maziv, the South African fibre and tower business previously owned by Remgro and Community Investment Ventures, in December 2025. The Maziv deal closed after a multi-year competition review and underpins Vodacom’s intention to “accelerate fibre deployment, particularly in historically underserved communities”.
Egypt leads international growth
Vodafone Egypt posted 36.2% local-currency service revenue growth and 44.5% EBITDA growth during FY2026, the strongest of any Vodacom unit. The International segment, which excludes South Africa, grew EBITDA 27.8% in local-currency terms, with double-digit growth in Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Lesotho.
Group chief executive Shameel Joosub said Vodacom’s focus for the coming year would include “maintaining trust, strengthening cyber security, and embedding strong AI governance to ensure that innovation is deployed responsibly”.
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