Bharti Airtel founder Sunil Mittal has described Africa as a “once in a lifetime opportunity” as the company moves to increase its ownership in Airtel Africa through a $2.9 billion share swap deal.
The Indian telecom group is seeking to raise its stake in Airtel Africa to as much as 90%, strengthening its long-term position in the region. The move comes ahead of a planned initial public offering of Airtel Africa’s mobile money business, which is expected to attract strong global investor interest.
Mittal said Airtel’s decision to enter Africa about 15 years ago was a “visionary move”, adding that the company remains strongly optimistic about the continent’s future growth.
“It is a once in a lifetime opportunity,” he said while speaking about the group’s Africa strategy.
The expansion comes as Airtel Africa continues to benefit from rising demand for mobile connectivity, digital payments, and mobile financial services across sub-Saharan Africa. Growth in smartphone usage and mobile money adoption has made the region one of the fastest-growing telecom markets in the world.
Sunil Mittal, whose net worth is estimated at $13.4 billion according to Forbes real-time data, is among India’s richest business leaders. He also has interests in Airtel Payments Bank, a joint venture with Kotak Mahindra Bank led by billionaire Uday Kotak.
According to Bloomberg, Bharti Airtel plans to issue up to 146.8 million shares at 1,923 rupees each to Indian Continent Investment, a company linked to the Mittal family. This would be in exchange for its 16.3% stake in Airtel Africa.
If approved by shareholders and regulators, the deal will increase Bharti Airtel’s ownership in Airtel Africa from 62.7% to about 79%. The company said the move will strengthen control over its African operations and improve earnings per share.
Mittal also said the company’s “ambition for Airtel should be whatever is allowed”, signalling its intention to further increase its stake in the African business where possible.
The consolidation effort is expected to be supported by Airtel Africa’s ongoing share buyback programme. It also comes as investors show growing interest in Africa’s mobile money sector, which is seen as a key driver of financial inclusion and digital payments across the continent.
Airtel Africa currently operates in 14 countries across Africa and is one of the region’s largest telecom and mobile money providers, with a strong presence in both connectivity and financial services.
