Bharti Airtel reported strong financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2026, supported by higher mobile ARPU, broadband expansion, growing digital services demand.
The India-based telecom operator strengthened its AI, cloud, cybersecurity, data center, and digital finance strategies while accelerating investments in 5G, fiber, and energy-efficient infrastructure.
Bharti Airtel’s quarterly revenue rose 15.7 percent to Rs 55,383 crore, while annual revenue for FY26 increased 22 percent to Rs 210,973 crore.
Airtel’s EBITDA grew 16.9 percent to Rs 32,038 crore, with EBITDA margin improving to 57.8 percent. EBIT increased 21.4 percent to Rs 18,156 crore, while net income before exceptional items reached Rs 7,245 crore compared to Rs 5,223 crore in the corresponding quarter last year.
The company’s customer base expanded to nearly 666 million across 15 countries, reinforcing Airtel’s position as the world’s second-largest telecom operator by subscriber base. India remained the largest market with around 482 million customers, while Africa contributed approximately 184 million subscribers.
Airtel’s India business revenue increased 7.7 percent to Rs 39,566 crore, driven by mobile services, broadband growth, and enterprise digital services. Airtel’s India mobile revenue grew 8.3 percent, supported by portfolio premiumization, increasing smartphone penetration, and higher customer spending.
Mobile ARPU improved to Rs 257 in Q4 FY26 from Rs 245 a year earlier, maintaining Airtel’s industry-leading position in India. Smartphone data customers increased by 20 million and 5.8 million sequentially, representing 80 percent of Airtel’s mobile customer base. Mobile data consumption surged 32.8 percent to 31.4 GB per customer per month.
The postpaid business maintained momentum, adding 0.8 million subscribers during the quarter and taking the total postpaid base to 29 million customers.
Airtel’s Homes division emerged as one of the fastest-growing business segments. Revenue from the broadband and connected homes business increased 37.3 percent, supported by fiber deployment and Wi-Fi expansion across India. Airtel added 1.135 million home customers during the quarter, taking the total customer base to 14.2 million.
The company accelerated digital infrastructure deployment by adding 2,426 towers and 16,746 mobile broadband base stations during the quarter. Over the past year, Airtel deployed 7,883 towers and expanded its fiber network by 43,290 kilometers to strengthen 5G coverage, broadband services, and enterprise connectivity.
Airtel Business delivered sequential revenue growth of 2.6 percent, driven by demand for connectivity, cloud, cybersecurity, and digital transformation services. The enterprise segment continues to be a major pillar in Airtel’s diversification strategy.
Airtel’s Digital TV division reported a 2.3 percent decline in revenue, generating Rs 747 crore during the quarter with a customer base of 16 million. However, Airtel said its IPTV services are gaining traction and supporting its broader convergence strategy.
The Passive Infrastructure Services business recorded 4.8 percent revenue growth, supported by tower additions and colocation demand.
Airtel Africa
Africa operations delivered another strong quarter with revenue growth of 22.3 percent. EBITDA margin in Africa improved to 49.5 percent, while EBIT margin rose to 32.5 percent. Airtel Africa continued to benefit from strong data demand, mobile money adoption, and subscriber growth across its markets.
Capex for the quarter stood at Rs 16,066 crore, including Rs 13,488 crore in India and Rs 2,577 crore in Africa. Airtel said investments were focused on 5G densification, fiber expansion, connected homes, data centers, and enterprise digital infrastructure.
The company is strengthening its sustainability strategy by reducing diesel dependence across telecom operations. Airtel is working with Indus Towers to transition telecom sites toward high-powered batteries and alternate clean energy sources.
Artificial intelligence remains central to Airtel’s long-term strategy. During the quarter, Airtel partnered with Google to enhance messaging security and spam protection through Rich Communications Services technology integrated with Airtel’s network intelligence capabilities.
Airtel also partnered with Zscaler to launch the AI & Cyber Threat Research Center – India. The initiative aims to strengthen national cyber resilience, support trusted AI adoption, and protect critical digital infrastructure across industries.
The company expanded its cloud and data center ambitions through its subsidiary Nxtra Data. Airtel announced a $1 billion investment from Alpha Wave Global, Carlyle, and Anchorage Capital to accelerate data center expansion across India. Airtel will also participate in the investment round.
In financial services, Airtel plans to expand its NBFC subsidiary, Airtel Money, with a capitalization of Rs 20,000 crore over the coming years. Airtel said the business will leverage its large data analytics capabilities, powered by more than 500 data scientists, to expand digital lending and financial inclusion services across India.
Gopal Vittal said FY26 was an important year for Airtel as the company crossed the 650 million customer milestone, expanded its data center footprint, launched sovereign cloud offerings, and strengthened its AI-driven digital ecosystem.
He added that Airtel will continue investing in world-class digital infrastructure, AI-led transformation, cloud services, and clean energy initiatives while focusing on portfolio premiumization and long-term value creation.