Bharti Airtel Limited — Q3 FY26 earnings call

Call held 6 Feb 2026

Management summary

Bharti Airtel delivered another quarter of strong performance across India and Africa, driven by sequential revenue and EBITDAaL growth. The company continued its focus on portfolio premiumization, 5G rollout, and fiber expansion, leading to improved ARPU and subscriber additions. Strategic investments in Data Centers and digital capabilities are underway, while debt metrics show continued improvement.

Highlights

  • Consolidated revenue reached approximately ₹54,000 crores, marking a 3.5% sequential growth.

  • Africa's constant currency revenue grew by 5.8%, maintaining solid performance.

  • Consolidated EBITDAaL was over ₹27,700 crores, a 4.2% growth, with the margin improving by 30 basis points sequentially to 51.3%.

  • Operating free cash flow (EBITDAaL minus capex) stood strong at ₹15,900 crores.

  • Consolidated net debt to EBITDAaL improved to 1.02, with India's ratio at 1.38.

  • India mobile added 4.4 million revenue-earning customers and 5.2 million smartphone data consumers, with ARPU at ₹259.

  • The company added 11,000 5G sites, achieving 74% population coverage, and rolled out over 11,000 km of fiber, adding 2 million fiber home passes.

  • The digital portfolio delivered robust revenue growth of 39% over the last year, with Payment Bank's annualized revenue run rate crossing ₹3,250 crores.

Concerns

  • Absence of tariff repair

  • AGR dues and spectrum payment obligations

Key financials

  1. Consolidated Revenue ₹54,000 Cr +3.5%QoQ
  2. Consolidated EBITDAaL ₹27,700 Cr +4.2%QoQ
  3. Consolidated EBITDAaL Margin 51.3% +0.3%QoQ
  4. Consolidated Operating Free Cash Flow ₹15,900 Cr
  5. India Mobile ARPU ₹259
  6. Consolidated Net Debt to EBITDAaL 1.02

What they filed

Q1 FY27: revenue up 18.3%, net profit up 34.9% against the same quarter last year.

₹ Cr · quarterly
Line itemQ2 FY25Q3 FY25Q4 FY25Q1 FY26Q2 FY26Q3 FY26Q4 FY26Q1 FY27
Revenue41,473 45,129 47,876 49,463 52,145 +26%53,982 +20%55,383 +16%58,539 +18%
EBITDA21,846 24,597 27,009 27,839 29,561 +35%30,783 +25%31,492 +17%33,303 +20%
Net profit4,153 16,135 12,476 7,422 8,651 +108%8,503 −47%9,247 −26%10,012 +35%
How to read this

₹ crore, as filed. The percentage beside a figure is the change against the same quarter a year earlier — never the quarter before, which would make every seasonal business look like it collapses and booms each year.

Segment breakdown

  • India (excluding passive infra)
    0.021 qoq_pct Revenue Growth₹18,450 Cr EBITDAaL51.8% EBITDAaL Margin₹7,100 Cr Capex₹11,350 Cr Operating Free Cash Flow1.38 Net Debt to EBITDAaL
  • Africa
    0.058 qoq_pct Constant Currency Revenue Growth
  • Airtel Business (B2B)
    ₹5,350 Cr Revenue0.015 qoq_pct Revenue Growth
  • Digital Portfolio
    0.39 yoy_pct Revenue Growth
  • Payment Bank
    ₹3,250 Cr Annualized Revenue Run Rate0.16 yoy_pct Annualized Revenue Run Rate Growth₹4,300 Cr Deposits0.28 yoy_pct Deposits Growth108 Mn Monthly Transacting Users (MTU)

Capital allocation

high confidence
  • Capex ₹11,800 Cr
    • Network strengthening (5G sites, fiber rollout)
    • Data Centers (Nxtra)
    • Transport network and modernization
    Capex for the quarter was about Rs.11,800 crores. Our operational excellence continues to be driven by our focus on portfolio premiumization, disciplined execution and tight control over costs through our war on waste initiatives. India EBITDAaL, excluding passive infra, came in at over Rs. 18,450 crores, growing at 2.8% sequentially. EBITDAaL margin stood at 51.8%, again a 30 basis points improvement. Capex for the quarter was at about Rs.7, 100 crores.
  • Debt 1.0× EBITDA
    Our consolidated net debt to EBITDAaL improved to 1.02 with India now at 1.38.
  • M&A STT GDC Joint venture · Announced

    Potential partnership opportunities for Airtel and STT GDC in India to accelerate DC rollout.

    Secondly, just on the Data Center business, Singtel has announced to acquire stake in STT GDC earlier this week, which has also a good footprint in India, could there be opportunities for Airtel and STT GDC in India to partner together and accelerate the pace of DC rollout, is that something which is possible?

Guidance & targets

Capacity

  • Data Center Capacity Capacity · next three to four years · High confidence 1 gigawatt
    Our plan is to reach 1 gigawatt capacity in the next three to four years and grow significantly ahead of the market.

    — Gopal Vittal

Market Share

  • Data Center Market Share Market Share · next three to four years · High confidence 25%
    We have about 120 to 130 megawatts of power, so we are in that ballpark, and our sense is that, in the next three to four years, we will have about a gigawatt capacity, which will give us about 25% share, so we are committed to stepping up investments in Data Centers.

    — Gopal Vittal

Volume

  • Broadband Connected Homes Volume · medium term · Medium confidence 100 million
    We continue to see large opportunity ahead of us in this market with a potential of 100 million connected homes over the medium term.

    — Shashwat Sharma

Growth

  • Digital Portfolio Growth Growth · current · High confidence 30%
    The second component of this business is the digital side of the portfolio, which is,really, our Cloud, Cybersecurity, our loT businesses, which are now growing at about 30%, but need to accelerate further because that market is very large and we have small shares in it

    — Gopal Vittal

Market context

  • B2B Business Growth Growth · current quarter · High confidence double digit
    For example, if you take this year, this quarter, we are at double digit growth on the B2B business.

    — Gopal Vittal

What to watch in Q4 FY26

ARPU growth from creative avenues

next quarter
Current ARPU at ₹259
Target Continued ARPU growth

Why it matters

ARPU is the most important metric for telecom operators, and management is relying on non-tariff hike strategies.

I think we have to find more creative avenues to continue to push on ARPU and I think that is really the effort of the Company in the absence of tariff repair.

Risks & concerns

  • Absence of tariff repair

    high

    Company relies on premiumization and creative avenues for ARPU growth in the absence of tariff hikes.

    I think we have to find more creative avenues to continue to push on ARPU and I think that is really the effort of the Company in the absence of tariff repair.

    Management acknowledged

  • AGR dues and spectrum payment obligations

    high

    Analyst raised concerns about repayment liabilities to the Government of India for AGR and spectrum, especially with Vodafone Idea's relief.

    The AGR issue just does not seem to go away, and now with Vodafone Idea having gotten this AGR relief, and your own AGR payments starting in March, which is about a billion dollars, and you obviously also have recurring spectrum payouts, which Vodafone Idea has gotten converted into equities, so I think, in that context, how are you thinking about your repayment liabilities to the Government of India, both for AGR and spectrum, and what do you think are the likely potential outcomes or scenarios through which maybe you also could have a lower cash flow payout or pressure from these two?

    Analyst acknowledged

  • Softening wireless market growth

    medium

    Overall market growth in wireless has been averaging about 6%, with a softening trend.

    So maybe I will take that. Yes, there has been, Manish, an overall, sort of, softening in market growth on wireless; I think that has been the case for the last couple of years. Market growth in wireless has been averaging about 6%

    Management acknowledged

  • Currency volatility in Africa

    medium

    Currency volatility is the main risk in Africa, though Naira has stabilized recently.

    So currency volatility is the only risk in Africa, but if you take a long-term view over a 10-12 year period, you typically factor in, let us say, a 5 to 7% devaluation per year and that is the cost of doing business in that continent

    Management acknowledged

  • Network interference in Hexacom

    medium

    Customer drop issues and network interference are causing a drag on Hexacom's performance.

    You would recollect that in the last quarter, we had called out that there were some issues because of which we had some customer drop; whilst we are working very closely with the other partner to see that it gets resolved, it has not yet got resolved completely, and hence there is a bit of drag which we still have on that.

    Management acknowledged

Q&A highlights

5 direct
Wireless revenue growth deceleration and ARPU repair Partial
So maybe I will take that. Yes, there has been, Manish, an overall, sort of, softening in market growth on wireless; I think that has been the case for the last couple of years. Market growth in wireless has been averaging about 6%, and if you strip out tariff repair, the drivers of premiumization continue to be the same as we have always seen, which is the feature phone to smartphones, prepaid to postpaid, data penetration, international roaming, so all of that remain intact. I think we have to find more creative avenues to continue to push on ARPU and I think that is really the effort of the Company in the absence of tariff repair.

Analyst questioned the slowdown in wireless revenue growth and the need for tariff repair, with management acknowledging market softening and focusing on 'creative avenues' for ARPU growth.

Asked by Manish Adukia

Data Center ambitions and rationale for rights issue call Direct
I think, at this point in time, I cannot give you a capex guidance, but clearly you will see us investing more and more behind Data Centers; I think, there is no question about that in my mind.

Management confirmed significant future investments in Data Centers to achieve 1 gigawatt capacity and 25% market share, and clarified the rights issue call was due to a time-bound option.

Asked by Manish Adukia

AGR issue and repayment liabilities Partial
We have written a few letters to the DoT, asking for a clarification and basically requesting parity on the treatment of the AGR dues. We are yet to hear from the DoT. Once we hear from the DoT, we will then decide what our next steps are, so that is all that we have, actually, information on the AGR. These letters have already been sent, and we are awaiting their response.

Analyst raised concerns about AGR dues and spectrum payments, with management stating they are awaiting DoT's response on their request for parity.

Asked by Manish Adukia

Capital allocation, special dividend, and STT GDC partnership Direct
On the Data Center side, we have also seen the announcement by STT and Singtel, and there could be opportunities; I think, opportunities like this keep coming to us. We have nothing to report at this point in time because it is still, sort of, very early days, so we will wait and watch how that plays out.

Management reiterated a progressive dividend policy and confirmed interest in exploring partnership opportunities with STT GDC for Data Center expansion.

Asked by Piyush Choudhary

5G pricing differentiation and priority-based services Partial
First of all, on 5G pricing, for the customer, the 5G versus 4G pricing we will have to rethink, but the reality is customers will have to pay for data eventually, the ARPUs have to move up, we have to keep reading and look at, really, a differential pricing architecture where people pay more for more, instead of looking at differential 5G or 4G pricing because that creates a little bit of confusion in the market and customers do not know what they are using, so I think that pricing repair and architecture discussion that we have had is still playing out, and I think we need to do a lot more on that side for getting ARPU growth.

Analyst probed on 5G monetization strategies, with management indicating a focus on overall pricing repair and differential pricing for data rather than specific 5G vs 4G pricing, while confirming 5G slicing capabilities are ready.

Asked by Sanjesh Jain

Net neutrality concerns for 5G slicing Direct
Sanjesh, this is a standard feature of 5G technology all over the world. We have seen or, let us say, some part of 5G technology around this SA network, we can also do it on NSA but largely on the SA network and you have seen this, for example, T-Mobile in the US has launched a first responder slice for the police and the defense, Singtel has done something in Singapore around certain areas, so you are not in any way discriminating use. What you are doing is actually using the intrinsic features of the technology, so that is really what it is. So this has nothing to do with net neutrality because there is no discrimination in any way of any content, so I think this is a myth that is there in some misplaced quarters.

Management clarified that 5G slicing, as an intrinsic feature of the technology, does not violate net neutrality principles, addressing analyst concerns.

Asked by Sanjesh Jain

Capital structure and return of capital Direct
I think that we are not at that point at this stage to do this. We think that there is still a lot of growth in this market and that is the place that we are really going to be focused on right now.

Analyst questioned the possibility of returning capital given the low net debt to EBITDA ratio, but management emphasized continued focus on growth investments rather than capital returns at this stage.

Asked by Pranav Kshatriya

Hexacom revenue growth vs. Airtel and network interference Direct
You would recollect that in the last quarter, we had called out that there were some issues because of which we had some customer drop; whilst we are working very closely with the other partner to see that it gets resolved, it has not yet got resolved completely, and hence there is a bit of drag which we still have on that.

Analyst noted Hexacom's underperformance in revenue growth compared to Airtel, with management attributing it to unresolved customer drop issues and network interference.

Asked by Sanjesh Jain

3 min read 7 chapters

Detailed narrative

Consolidated & India Performance Overview

Bharti Airtel reported a strong Q3 FY26 with consolidated revenue of approximately ₹54,000 crores, growing 3.5% sequentially. Consolidated EBITDAaL increased by 4.2% to over ₹27,700 crores, with the margin expanding by 30 basis points sequentially to 51.3%. India's revenue (excluding passive infra) grew 2.1% sequentially, contributing to an EBITDAaL of over ₹18,450 crores and a margin of 51.8%. Operating free cash flow (EBITDAaL minus capex) was robust at ₹15,900 crores consolidated and ₹11,350 crores for India.

Mobility & Broadband Growth in India

The India mobile segment added 4.4 million revenue-earning customers and 5.2 million smartphone data consumers during the quarter, driving ARPU to ₹259. The company's 5G rollout progressed well, adding 11,000 sites and achieving 74% population coverage. Broadband saw sustained growth with 1.2 million net adds, bringing the total installed connected homes to 13 million. The Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) customer base now exceeds 3 million, supported by over 11,000 km of fiber rollout and 2 million fiber home passes.

Airtel Business & Digital Portfolio Expansion

Airtel Business revenues grew 1.5% sequentially to ₹5,350 crores, securing multiple deals in connectivity and adjacencies like Airtel Cloud, Cyber Security, and IoT. The digital portfolio demonstrated robust revenue growth of 39% year-over-year. Strategic investments continue in Cloud, Cyber Security, Financial Services, IoT, and CPaaS. Airtel Finance's loan disbursements crossed ₹500 crores monthly, and Payment Bank's annualized revenue run rate surpassed ₹3,250 crores, growing 16% YoY, with deposits of ₹4,300 crores, up 28% YoY.

Strategic Pillars & ESG Initiatives

The company's strategy is built on a diversified and resilient portfolio, winning quality customers, delivering brilliant customer experience, leveraging digital capabilities, and a 'war on waste'. ESG progress includes solarizing over 3,000 new sites (total 38,000) and the Satya Bharti schools reaching 36,000 students. AI is being embedded across operations for revenue growth, product differentiation, operational excellence, and enhanced customer experience, with examples like AI-powered Anti-Spam solution blocking 71 billion spam calls and dynamic power optimization for radio layers.

Capital Allocation & Debt Management

Consolidated capex for the quarter was ₹11,800 crores. Bharti Airtel's consolidated net debt to EBITDAaL improved to 1.02, with India's ratio at 1.38, reflecting prudent capital allocation and sustained operational excellence. Management indicated a commitment to stepping up investments in Data Centers, aiming for 1 gigawatt capacity and 25% market share in the next 3-4 years. The company also mentioned exploring opportunities with STT GDC following Singtel's stake acquisition.

5G Monetization & Network Evolution

The company's 5G expansion is progressing as planned, with 181 million 5G customers. While 5G pricing differentiation is being re-evaluated, the focus remains on overall pricing repair and differential data pricing to drive ARPU growth. Management confirmed that 5G capabilities, including network slicing for priority services, are ready for India and do not pose net neutrality concerns. Investments are also directed towards building further resiliency in the transport network and modernizing overall networks, with some pullback in 5G capex as device adoption grows.

Africa Performance & Investments

Africa maintained its trajectory of solid performance with constant currency revenue growth of 5.8%. Management views Africa as a 'phenomenal investment' due to its undervalued assets, young population, low penetration, and favorable industry structure in most markets. The company will continue to look for opportunities to invest further in Africa, leveraging group-wide synergies like tech stack deployment to sharpen go-to-market capabilities and drive revenue growth.

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