On paper, 2025 was a comeback year for MTN Nigeria.
After two bruising years triggered by currency reforms and naira devaluation, the telecom giant posted a staggering ₦1.1 trillion in post-tax profit, reversing losses of nearly ₦400 billion in 2024. Revenue surged to a record ₦5.2 trillion, powered largely by data consumption and a 50 percent tariff hike approved by the regulator.
Shareholders are celebrating. Customers are not.
While the company returned to profitability, and announced a ₦15 per share dividend payout totalling ₦314.9 billion, subscribers filed more than 1.6 million complaints in 2025 over poor service delivery, unexplained charges and chronic network disruptions.
The disconnect is hard to ignore: record earnings on one side, rising public frustration on the other.
A Tariff Hike That Changed the Math
In February, Nigeria’s telecom regulator approved a 50 percent tariff increase aimed at cushioning operators from foreign exchange losses after a weaker naira battered the sector.
The move provided a lifeline to MTN Nigeria, a subsidiary of South Africa-based MTN Group.
Data revenue alone accounted for more than half of total turnover, rising nearly 55 percent year-on-year. Active data subscribers climbed to 53.2 million, while the total subscriber base expanded to 87.3 million.
But many Nigerians say they are paying significantly more for services that feel significantly worse.
Some users report weekly data plans ballooning from ₦2,000 for 15GB to as much as ₦6,000 under revised pricing structures. Complaints range from slow data speeds and frequent call drops to unexplained data depletion and automatic activation of paid services such as caller tunes.
In several cases, consumer litigation has resulted in fines—reportedly up to ₦15 million, against the company over unauthorised deductions.
The Complaint Explosion
Regulators are paying attention.
The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has launched inquiries into service quality and consumer rights violations. Industry data indicates that Nigerian telecom operators collectively logged millions of complaints in 2025, with MTN accounting for a significant portion.
At the heart of the backlash: basic service reliability.
Customers across major cities report recurring outages, sluggish connectivity and sudden network blackouts—particularly during peak hours.
MTN attributes part of the instability to operational challenges, including an average of 9,200 fibre cuts annually and widespread vandalism of infrastructure. But critics argue that infrastructure vulnerabilities are not new—and should be factored into long-term investment planning.
Profitability Restored—But at What Cost?
To be sure, MTN’s financial turnaround is significant.
After suffering ₦1.7 trillion in net foreign exchange losses over two years, the company posted ₦90.3 billion in FX gains in 2025, buoyed by exchange-rate stability. Shareholders’ funds rebounded to ₦548.7 billion, while EBITDA margin climbed sharply to 52.7 percent.
CEO Karl Toriola credited “balance sheet resilience” and disciplined financial management.
Meanwhile, MTN Group announced a $6.2 billion acquisition deal to fully purchase tower infrastructure provider IHS Towers, a move analysts at Meristem Securities say could strengthen EBITDA in the long term through better lease pricing.
For investors, the narrative is one of recovery and strategic positioning.
For subscribers, the experience is often one of frustration.
The CSR Question
Telecom operators in developed markets are routinely subjected to strict service-level agreements and aggressive regulatory enforcement tied directly to consumer protection.
In Nigeria, critics argue, corporate social responsibility (CSR) must go beyond philanthropy and sponsorships to include something more fundamental: delivering the service customers pay for.
At a time when digital connectivity underpins banking, education, commerce and public services, network reliability is not a luxury; it is infrastructure.
Yet as profits swell, consumer dissatisfaction appears to be rising in parallel.
A Sector at a Crossroads
Nigeria’s telecom industry is undeniably critical to economic growth. Data remains the backbone of digital transformation, and MTN Nigeria remains its largest player.
But the numbers tell two stories.
One is about a company that survived currency shocks, restored profitability and rewarded shareholders handsomely.
The other is about millions of customers grappling with higher bills, service interruptions and unexplained deductions.
The central question now is not whether MTN Nigeria is profitable.
It is whether Nigeria’s telecom giants can deliver world-class service to match world-class earnings—or whether record profits and recurring outages will continue to coexist in uneasy tension.
