Optasia, the South African company that provides airtime-credit services to most Nigerian telecommunications operators and banks, said revenue from airtime lending in Nigeria fell below 4% of group revenue in the second quarter of 2026. The company attributed the decline to regulatory changes, a temporary suspension of services and increased competition.

According to Optasia’s H1 2026 financial report, released to investors on Monday, Nigeria accounted for less than 4% of group revenue in Q2 2026 because operations were paused for part of the period. The figure compares with approximately 14% of total revenue generated from Nigeria during the full year of 2025.

The disruption followed the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission’s (FCCPC) introduction of new rules in April 2026 for digital consumer lending services. The rules, known as the Digital and Non-Traditional Consumer Lending (DEON) Rule, cover airtime-credit services because they involve borrowing airtime or data from telecommunications operators.

Telecom operators temporarily suspended airtime lending nationwide to comply with the new regulations and recover outstanding amounts associated with the service. Following legal challenges and intervention by stakeholders, the suspension was lifted gradually, with operators resuming operations at different times. Optasia confirmed on June 24, 2026, that airtime lending had been fully restored across all of its Nigerian telecommunications partners.

Optasia operates in Nigeria through Nairtime and provides the credit infrastructure behind airtime and data loans offered by major mobile operators. Its AI-driven lending technology has been used by MTN, Airtel and Globacom.

The Nigerian airtime-lending market serves more than 40 million people, according to recent reports, and is valued at between ₦300 billion and ₦400 billion. The service is among the key offerings provided by telecommunications operators. Because the service is delivered through operators and banks, changes to provider eligibility and allocation rules affect both the companies supplying the credit infrastructure and the channels through which customers access airtime and data loans.

During the first three months of 2026, MTN and Airtel reported combined airtime-lending revenue of ₦98.22 billion. Airtel recorded ₦50.42 billion, equivalent to $36.8 million, while MTN reported ₦47.8 billion.

However, after the service was restored, Optasia said it no longer operated as the exclusive provider for its partners. The company now operates in a multi-provider model, competing with other credit-service providers in Nigeria, with customer allocation determined by performance.

“Services are now live under a multi-provider model, with customer allocation based on performance. Multi-provider arrangements have been present in the Nigerian market for some time,” Optasia said in its H1 2026 financial report.

During the suspension, the FCCPC approved five additional airtime and data lenders. The companies, all Value Added Services (VAS) operators, are Total Tim Nigeria Limited, Rane Interactive Medien CLS Limited, Mode NG Applications Limited, Cloud Interactive Associate Limited and Coverage Broadband Limited.

Regulators and stakeholders also said telecommunications operators and banks could use one provider or a combination of two or more airtime-lending providers, provided the providers had FCCPC approval.

Optasia said it had obtained the required FCCPC approval to operate its credit services legally in Nigeria while monitoring ongoing legal developments. The company also said its core risk-scoring algorithms, technology and decision-making models remain its own intellectual property.

In its H1 2026 results, Optasia reported that revenue from airtime-credit services increased 16.7%, rising from $43.8 million to $51.1 million. Total group profit reached $36.9 million, up 58.3% year over year from $23.3 million.

Revenue from mobile financial services rose 87.3% year over year to $133.0 million, which Optasia said represented 72% of group revenue.

The group nevertheless recorded a loss in its South African operation. Revenue from Nairtime South Africa increased 12.4% to $3.54 million during the period, but the unit posted a loss of $1.6 million. It had recorded a profit of $1.5 million during the first six months of 2025.

Optasia attributed the loss to higher expenses. Spending at Nairtime South Africa increased 210.7% year over year, from $1.67 million in H1 2025 to $5.17 million in H1 2026.

Source: TechNext24