Airtel Africa has outlined its strategy across its 14 markets, which will include listing its mobile money unit, leveraging capacity from Starlink, and exploring intergrating crypto and other virtual assets.
- •The telco is in advanced discussions with regulators across its markets to leverage satellite capacity from Starlink, as the telco accelerates a strategy to close rural coverage gaps, defend market share and position its fintech arm for a public listing.
- •Airtel has also confirmed that plans to list its mobile money business remain on course, with management currently evaluating potential listing locations.
- •The telco also says open to integrating virtual asset services, including stablecoins and cryptocurrency transactions, on a demand-driven basis.
“The arrangement we are eyeing with Starlink covers enterprise connectivity through the Starlink kits and transmission backhauling, which will enable customers to continue using our services in remote areas not within our reach,” Group Chief Executive Officer Sunil Taldar said while speaking in Nairobi on Thursday.
In Kenya, where Airtel trails market leader Safaricom, patchy rural coverage has historically weighed on subscriber growth. Data from the Communications Authority of Kenya estimates Airtel’s market share at slightly above 30%, underscoring the competitive pressure in a market dominated by mobile data and mobile money ecosystems.
According to data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), Kenya had just 769 satellite internet users in 2017. The number rose modestly to 1,547 in 2018 before sliding to 860 in 2021 and 730 in 2022. For most of that period, satellite internet accounted for less than 0.005% of total subscriptions, serving mainly NGOs, large farms, tourism camps, remote government sites and corporates seeking redundancy links.
The inflection came in 2023, when Starlink entered the market. Subscriptions surged to 2,933, a 302% year-on-year increase, the fastest growth ever recorded in the segment. Momentum intensified in 2024, with subscriptions soaring to 19,403, a 562% jump over 2023 and a 2,559% increase from 2022 levels.
In practical terms, more satellite users signed up in 2024 alone than in the previous seven years combined.
“This market is mature, we are increasing coverage and that is where Starlink services come into play,” said Ashish Malhotra, Managing Director and CEO of Airtel Kenya.
For investors, the satellite pivot signals a capital-light expansion model that could improve network quality metrics, support enterprise revenue and reduce churn in underserved regions.
Mobile Money IPO, Crypto Future
Airtel has also confirmed that plans to list its mobile money business remain on course, with management currently evaluating potential listing locations. Alongside its connectivity push, the IPO would follow a broader continental trend of telecom operators unlocking value from fast-growing fintech subsidiaries.
Airtel Money competes in a high-penetration mobile payments market shaped by regulatory interoperability mandates and intensifying digital lending, savings and cross-border remittance activity.
In a notable signal to digital asset players,
“We will come up with those products (stablecoins and crypto). For now, we are offering no dates and timelines as we let demand dictate when,” management said.
The comments come as Kenya moves to formalise oversight of the digital asset sector. Lawmakers last year passed the Virtual Asset Service Providers Bill, 2025, establishing the country’s first comprehensive licensing and supervisory framework for cryptocurrency businesses.
Kenya is already one of Africa’s most active peer-to-peer crypto markets, driven by high mobile money penetration, a youthful population and strong diaspora remittance flows. The law adopts a multi-agency oversight model, placing supervision under institutions such as the Central Bank of Kenya(CBK) and the Capital Markets Authority (CMA).
