Airtel To Become Largest Telco In Nigeria If It Buys 9mobile

9Mobile, the fourth largest telecommunication company in Nigeria has been up for sale since Etisalat exited. One of the companies that have expressed interest in purchasing 9Mobile is Airtel.

According to analysis by Goldman Sachs, if Airtel’s stated interest in buying 9mobile (formerly, Etisalat Nigeria) is pulled off, it would become the largest telco by subscribers in a market that is Airtel’s largest in Africa and generates 30% of its revenues in the continent. Goldman Sachs further stated: “We take no view on a potential transaction, but a simple sum of the respective market shares of Bharti and 9mobile would suggest a No 1 operator in Nigeria by subscribers, slightly ahead of present market leader MTN.”

At present, Airtel is the third-largest telco in Nigeria with a 25% subscriber market share, while fourth-largest, 9mobile has 12%. If Airtel were to acquire 9mobile, its customer market share at 37% would be a tad higher than MTN’s 36%.

Sunil Mittal, the Chairman of Airtel has been quoted in interviews that Airtel is keen on erstwhile Etisalat Nigeria, which is now called 9mobile and is up for sale

Separately, Airtel has been admonished by Goldman Sachs to exit three East African countries including Kenya, Rwanda and Tanzania.

Sachs says: “Such asset sales could help Bharti reduce, leverage further and potentially help expand margins. The three countries where Bharti is looking for exits options have margins significantly lower vs the current Africa average”.