Zain posts 6% jump in Q1 net profit; revenue soars to $1.3bln

PHOTO

Kuwait - Zain Group, a leading telecom innovator with operations in seven markets across the Middle East and Africa, has registered a net profit of KD47 million ($156 million) for the first three months, up 6% over last year, while its revenues for Q1 rose 7% to hit $1.3 billion.

Announcing its consolidated financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2022, Zain Group said it had generated consolidated revenue of KD408 million ($1.3 billion) for the Q1 2022, up 7% year-on-year (Y-o-Y). Ebitda for the quarter reached KD154 million ($507 million), down 3% y-o-y, reflecting an ebitda margin of 38%.

Net income for the quarter reached KD47 million reflecting an earnings per share of 11 Fils ($0.04).

For Q1 2022, foreign currency translation was impacted mainly due to the currency devaluation in Sudan from an average of 271 (SDG / USD) during Q1 2021 to an average of 483 (SDG / USD) during Q1 2022, cost the Group USD 120 million in Revenue and USD 80 million in ebitda.

Across its footprint, Zain increased its active customer base by 2.3 million to serve 50.9 million, it added.

Commenting on the results, Group Chairman Ahmed Al Tahous said: "Our future-ready approach to invest heavily in 5G technology and 4G network expansion across all markets in recent years is paying off, evident by the 2.3 million additional customers and resulting revenue growth during the first quarter."

"The board is working closely with executive management in seeking new lucrative opportunities and we are well primed to exploit the next phase of growth in the telecommunications sector to drive shareholder value, he stated.

Vice-Chairman and Group CEO Bader Nasser Al Kharafi pointed out that the overall profitable growth and impressive performances in key markets witnessed during Q1 2022 reaffirms the success of the 4Sight strategy in driving digital transformation and cost optimization initiatives.

"Our operational focus on expanding and monetizing our 4G, FTTH and 5G networks has created lucrative revenue streams particularly related to Enterprise (B2B) services to government and businesses of all sizes, a key area we will continue to nurture and expand. We have made giant strides transforming Zain into the digital partner of choice for governments and enterprises across our markets," he noted.

"The solid performances of our operations in Kuwait and KSA, where net profits increased 22% and 97% respectively, are predominantly on the back of 5G and B2B customer and revenue growth, are extremely pleasing, as is the 156% net profit increase in Sudan where 4G customer uptake combined with currency mitigation related price revamps have contributed positively to all its financial metrics. The Group financial performance would have been even more impressive if not for the unfortunate currency devaluation mainly in Sudan that impacted revenues by $120 million," he added.