MTN Ghana has reported strong financial results for the first nine months of 2026, supported by growth in connectivity and mobile financial services, as it prepares to expand its 5G network following a new spectrum award.
For the nine months ended 30 September 2026, service revenue increased by 35.5% year-on-year (YoY) to GHS23.2 billion, driven by accelerating performance in the third quarter (Q3).
The performance comes alongside a regulatory milestone, with the National Communications Authority notifying MTN Ghana of the award of spectrum in the 700MHz and 3GHz bands to support its 5G rollout.
The 15-year spectrum licences will enable the operator to expand high-speed connectivity and increase network capacity. MTN Ghana said the acquisition cost of $202 million had been factored into its capital outlook and would not affect its dividend commitments.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased by 40.6% YoY to GHS14.3 billion, lifting the EBITDA margin by 3.1 percentage points to 61.5%.
Profit after tax rose by 43% to GHS7.8 billion, while earnings per share reached GHS0.586.
The boards of the core telecommunications business and Mobile Money Fintech Limited also declared third-quarter dividends of GHS0.03 per share each.
Subscriber growth continued to support the performance. Mobile subscribers increased by 12.7% YoY to 34.3 million, while active data users grew by 16.1% to 22 million. Active Mobile Money users reached 18.9 million, representing 6.9% growth.
Growth was supported by increased data consumption and demand for digital financial services. The fintech business also recorded higher revenue from its core wallet and advanced financial services offerings.
“Overall, Q3 further strengthened our nine-month performance, demonstrating the resilience and diversification of our growth engines. This performance also reinforced our capacity to generate earnings and cash flow while continuing to invest in the long-term growth of the business and deliver returns to shareholders,” said Stephen Blewett, CEO of MTN Ghana.
“The additional spectrum capacity will allow us to extend high-speed connectivity to more households and broaden our addressable market,” he added.
MTN Ghana expects full-year service revenue growth in the low-to-mid-30% range, supported by moderating inflation.
The spectrum award comes as Ghana reshapes its 5G market.
In July 2026, ITWeb Africa reported that the government had ended Next-Gen InfraCo's exclusive rights to build and operate the country's wholesale 5G network, opening the market to other operators, including MTN Ghana and Telecel.
The policy shift is expected to encourage greater competition and investment in next-generation connectivity infrastructure.
MTN Ghana's investment also builds on its growing data and fintech businesses. In its 2025 results, the operator reported a 46.8% increase in data revenue and a 39.2% rise in fintech revenue, highlighting the increasing contribution of digital services to its business.
The latest results reinforce the importance of data and mobile financial services to MTN Ghana's growth strategy as it prepares to expand its 5G footprint.
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