Manama: Mahmood Rafique, Editor: Zain Group, which currently operates in eight markets across the Middle East and Africa, reported robust financials for the first half with net profit up 49 per cent to $395million and revenues up 14 per cent to $3.5billion.
Zain served 50.9 million customers at the end H1 2025, a 7% increase Year-on-Year (YOY), driven by network restoration in Sudan and expansion in Iraq.
The board has recommended interim dividend of 10 fils per share for the 5th consecutive year, that will be payable to entitled shareholders on 3rd September 2025.
The highlights include customer base which increased 7% driven by network restoration in Sudan and site expansion in Iraq; data revenue grew 8% YoY to reach USD 1.3 billion, representing 37% of total Group revenue; over the six months, Zain Group invested $397 million in CAPEX (11% of revenue); operates in Kuwait, KSA, Bahrain and Jordan witness impressive growth in 5G revenues; Zain Kuwait and KSA launch 5G advanced services enhancing digital innovation in these markets; impressive net profit growth in Sudan (+101%), KSA (+28%) and Iraq (+23%) for H1 2025; fintech revenue witnessed robust growth of 28% YoY, while transaction volume soared 46% YoY; groupwide enterprise revenue witnessed 11% growth YoY, as ZainTECH and B2B teams win key business and government accounts, ZainTECH revenue soared 94% YoY; groupwide digital services witness revenue growth of 7% driven by increase in Sudan and Kuwait; Zain Omantel International (ZOI) records exceptional revenue growth of 324% YoY; receives multiple industry awards for its innovative subsea and terrestrial networks; Zain launches ‘Bede’ Fintech Platform in Sudan offering money transfers, airtime top-ups, bill payments, merchant purchases, cash deposits and withdrawals.
“The Group’s strong performance underscores the productive alliance between the Board and executive management teams of all our entities in delivering our ‘4WARD—Progress with Purpose’ strategy. Our focus on acceleration, collaboration, and digital innovation, alongside our ESG commitments, is having comprehensive impact on sustainable value creation for all stakeholders. Moreover, constructive relationships with regulators and key stakeholders are also driving meaningful connectivity across all customer segments,” Osamah Al Furaih, Chairman of Zain Group, said, while commenting on Q2 and H1 2025 results.
“Following this H1 2025 performance and solid financial position, the Board is pleased to declare a fifth consecutive interim dividend of 10 fils per share, in line with our minimum annual dividend policy of 35 fils.”
“Our outstanding operational and financial performance over the past six months is the result of carefully executed strategic investments in network expansion and AI technologies, combined with disciplined cost optimization and focused monetization of our enterprise, fintech, and digital service portfolios. We are committed to sustaining this positive momentum and elevating Zain to even greater heights,” Bader Al-Kharafi, Zain Vice-Chairman and Group CEO, said.
“Despite fierce competition in our home market of Kuwait—which still delivered solid results—our core operations across all major markets made notable strides. Sudan, Saudi Arabia, and Iraq recorded exceptional double-digit net income growth. Furthermore, our ICT enterprise arm, ZainTECH, and our global wholesale carrier, Zain Omantel International (ZOI), performed exceptionally well, as our fintech and digital service portfolios did across multiple markets.
