Shareholders of MTN Ghana could begin receiving quarterly dividend payments from this year if the board's new proposals secure the required approvals.

According to the company’s 2025 financial statements, the move reflects the “commitment of the Board to return value to shareholders where possible.”

MTN said the proposal is in line with its updated dividend policy, which allows Scancom PLC to recommend and declare an interim dividend for the first quarter.

Under the proposal, shareholders will receive 6 pesewas per share for the first quarter.

The company said all proposals remain subject to the necessary regulatory approvals.

Details of the revised policy

MTN said it has revised its dividend policy to permit the declaration of interim dividends after each quarterly result.

However, the company noted that any dividend payment will depend on cash availability, retained earnings and compliance with debt covenants.

The proposed payment will be based on a dividend payout ratio of between 60% and 80% of annual profits.

It added that, upon the recommendation of the MTN Ghana board, shareholders may also approve a final dividend at the Annual General Meeting through an ordinary resolution.

As part of the first-quarter proposal, the board of Scancom PLC has recommended and declared an interim dividend of GHS0.03 per share.

Mobile Money Fintech Limited has also recommended a dividend of GHS 0.03 per share for the quarter, subject to shareholder approval.

The dividends from both companies are expected to be paid on June 18, 2026.

First-quarter financial performance

MTN ended the first quarter of 2026 with profit before tax rising by more than 48% to GHS3.5 billion.

Revenue for the first three months of the year reached GHS7.2 billion.

Taxes paid to the state between January and March rose by more than 50% to GHS1 billion.

Mobile Money revenue stood at GHS1.7 billion during the period.

Revenue from data services climbed by more than 52% to GHS4.2 billion.

MTN said this was driven by a 16% year-on-year increase in active data customers to 20.6 million, while usage rose by 40.9% year-on-year to 18.8 gigabytes per active user per month.

The company said growth in usage reflected rising adoption of video streaming, social media and digital applications, supported by improved network quality and optimised data offerings.

“As a result, data traffic increased by 63.4% YoY,” MTN said.

Data’s contribution to service revenue increased to 59.0% from 52.6% in the first quarter of 2025.

Mobile Money performance

Mobile Money revenue of GHS1.7 billion was supported by growth in both basic and advanced services, alongside a 4.0% year-on-year increase in active users to 18 million.

Revenue from basic services rose by 21.9% year-on-year to GHS1.1 billion.

This was driven largely by a 6.4% increase in withdrawal revenue to GHS 711 million and a 65.2% rise in transfer service revenue to GHS397.4 million.

Despite the strong performance, Mobile Money’s contribution to service revenue declined from 24.9% in the first quarter of 2025 to 23.6%, reflecting faster growth in data revenue.

CEO on first-quarter performance

Chief Executive Officer of MTN Ghana, Stephen Blewett, said the company’s first-quarter performance reflected disciplined execution of its strategic priorities.

He said the results were driven by “sustained momentum across our core business lines — data, Mobile Money, voice and digital services — supported by ongoing investments in network capacity, platform innovation and growth in ecosystem partnerships.”

“These efforts enabled us to sustain a strong commercial trajectory while reinforcing MTN Ghana’s role as a critical enabler of digital and financial inclusion,” he added.

Mr Blewett said service revenue grew by 35.7% year-on-year during the quarter.

He added that the growth in service revenue, together with disciplined cost management and a favourable operating environment, contributed to a 42.9% increase in EBITDA.

The EBITDA margin improved by 3.1 percentage points to 61.2%.

He said the performance underscores the company’s strong financial health and the effectiveness of its strategic initiatives.

“This performance highlights our ability to deliver sustained value,” he said.

“We remain confident in our ability to deliver on our ambition, supported by a resilient operating model, a strong market position and a clear focus on long-term, sustainable value creation for shareholders and other stakeholders.”