Bharti Airtel increases Airtel Africa holding to 79% in transaction worth ₹28,000 crore

Bharti Airtel increased its stake in Airtel Africa by 16.31 percent to 79 percent through a share swap deal. ₹28,200 crore, according to a company filing on Tuesday.

Before the transaction, Bharti Airtel held 62.73 percent stake in Airtel Africa.

In the filing, Bharti Airtel said, “The company completed the acquisition of 595,204,251 shares (approximately 16.3 per cent stake) of Airtel Africa from ICIL on June 22, 2026. As a result, the company’s actual stake in Airtel Africa increased to approximately 79 per cent.” he said.

The transaction involves Bharti Airtel issuing shares on a preferential basis to promoter group entity Indian Continent Investment Limited (ICIL) in exchange for a 16.31 per cent stake in Airtel Africa.

The transaction, a cashless share swap, offers the company the opportunity to acquire a large block and increase its economic interest in a high-growth asset without any increased leverage or cash outflow, the statement said.

In Bharti Airtel’s latest earnings for the March 2026 quarter, Bharti Enterprises Founder and Chairman Sunil Bharti Mittal had outlined a plan to increase promoters’ stake in group companies.

Mittal predicts that Airtel Africa will become a US$10 billion revenue company in the next few years and will become a very strong subsidiary of Airtel India, generating very good returns for the company.

Airtel Africa doubles profits to US$813 million (approx. ₹7,700 crore for FY26) was mainly driven by tariff adjustments and foreign exchange earnings in Nigeria.

The African business reported a 29.5% increase in revenue to $6.4 billion in FY26, from $4.9 billion in FY25.