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MTN Nigeria has said that its mobile money subsidiary, MoMo PSB, recorded a 47% decline in active wallet users at the end of 2024.
This brought the total active wallets on the platform to 2.8 million from 5.3 million recorded at the end of 2023.
MTN disclosed this in its audited financial results for the full year 2024 released on Thursday.
According to the company, the reduction in active wallets and agents reflects a deliberate shift toward prioritizing higher-quality, more engaged users and optimizing operational efficiency.
Number of agents drop
The company also disclosed that the number of MoMo agents and merchants dropped by 76.8% and 79.2%, respectively.
- Despite these declines, transaction volumes increased by 4.3%, signaling improved quality within the wallet base and sustained demand in the fintech ecosystem.
“In fintech, we recalibrated the business’ growth strategy to improve the quality and stickiness of our wallet base and the development of advanced services, supported by the promotion of MoMo PSB app.
“In this regard, we revamped our customer acquisition strategy. Although this intervention resulted in a decline in active wallets (down 46.6% to 2.8 million), it was essential to establish a sustainable growth trajectory for our MoMo PSB ecosystem,” MTN Nigeria’s CEO, Karl Toriola explained.
Fintech revenue surges on airtime lending product
Meanwhile, MTN Nigeria’s fintech business delivered a strong performance, with revenue growing by 23.2% year-on-year.
The growth accelerated in the fourth quarter, with a 38.7% increase, driven primarily by the success of its airtime lending product, Xtratime.
According to the company, this product has gained traction among users, contributing significantly to the fintech segment’s robust performance.
The digital services segment also recorded impressive growth, with revenue increasing by 95.2% year-on-year.
- This surge was fueled by the rising adoption of rich media services and enhancements to the user journey experience.
- By the end of 2024, MTN Nigeria’s rich media subscriptions reached 9.8 million monthly active users, marking a 22.4% increase from the previous year.
- The company attributed this growth to its continued investment in digital content and platforms, which have resonated with users seeking engaging and personalized experiences.
- MTN Nigeria’s digital services business is now a significant contributor to its overall revenue, reflecting the success of its strategy to diversify beyond traditional telecom offerings.
What you should know
Nairametrics earlier reported that MTN Nigeria recorded a N400.4 billion loss after tax in full year 2024 despite a 35.9% growth in revenue to N3.3 trillion.
- MTN’s financial performance continues to be impacted by record-high inflation and the naira’s devaluation, exacerbating the business’s operational expenses.
- The company’s net foreign exchange losses, a recurring feature since the Central Bank of Nigeria unified the foreign exchange market, increased by 24.98% to N925.36 billion from N740.43 billion in 2023.
- The company, however, remains upbeat about its future outlook and is focused on restoring a positive net asset position in 2025.
The telco highlighted that the recent tariff hike will boost its 2025 revenue by at least 40 percent and help it increase its capex intensity.