Cell C adds 1.3 million subscribers as net debt falls 64%

South African mobile operator Cell C added 1.3 million subscribers in its 2026 financial year, while cutting net debt by 64% following a balance sheet restructuring completed during its first full year as a listed company.

The operator ended the period with 8.9 million subscribers, up 19% year-on-year, a figure that excludes 5.7 million MVNO subscribers recorded on its Home Location Register (HLR). Revenue rose 14% to ZAR 12.6 billion (US$786 million), while service revenue increased 6% to ZAR 11.6 billion. Reported EBITDA reached ZAR 5.5 billion, although this figure included one-off gains from the restructuring; adjusted EBITDA, stripping out these items, came to ZAR 2.4 billion.

The balance sheet reset was a defining feature of the year, with net debt falling from ZAR 5.7 billion to ZAR 2 billion. Net debt to EBITDA consequently improved from 4.29 times to 1.56 times. Cell C said the restructuring, completed following its November 2025 JSE listing, had left the operator in a stronger position as it moves into its first full year following the integration of its CEC acquisition.

Wholesale service revenue increased 20% to ZAR 1.8 billion, with Cell C estimating it holds an 80–85% share of South Africa's MVNO market. The operator added 1.2 million MVNO customers to its HLR during the year.

Prepaid revenue increased 9.7%, with gross prepaid revenue growth accelerating into double digits in the second half as the company scaled back historical airtime discounts. Indirect channels also performed strongly, with gross additions up 69% and upgrades increasing 101%.

Network improvements supported a stronger customer proposition over the year. Data traffic increased 47% year-on-year, comfortably outpacing subscriber growth, while voice traffic declined 4%. The operator's Net Promoter Score rose from 19 to 33, app users more than doubled, and app revenue increased 41%. Cell C also launched Cell C Business in January 2026, targeting SME and enterprise customers, and expanded international roaming to 120 operators globally.

Looking ahead, Cell C expects FY27 to be its first full year operating as a simpler group, with focus shifting from integration towards growth and margins.

Based on adjusted FY26 revenue of ZAR 13.6 billion – which includes a full 12 months of CEC – the operator expects revenue growth in the upper-single-digit range for FY27, alongside capital expenditure of between ZAR 750 million and ZAR 850 million, broadly in line with the ZAR 810 million spent in FY26.

CEO Jorge Mendes said the company had rebuilt and grown its customer base, strengthened its wholesale position and improved customer trust over the year, and that FY27 would focus on building on those gains. Source: Developing Telecoms