UAE telcom major e& (formerly known as Etisalat Group) today reported a consolidated net profit of AED4.9 billion ($1.33 billion) for H1 2022, a 2.5% increase over the same period in 2021.
The company's consolidated revenues reached AED26.3 billion ($7.16 billion). At constant exchange rates, revenue increased by 3.8 percent. Consolidated EBITDA remained steady in reporting currency at AED13.4 billion, while increased by 4.1 percent in constant currency, resulting in an EBITDA margin of 51 percent, it said.
The number of etisalat by e& subscribers in the UAE reached 13.3 million in H1 2022, representing an increase of 10 percent over the same period last year, while aggregate group subscribers reached 160 million, a 2.5 percent increase.
Earnings per share was AED0.56 compared to AED 0.55 (+2.5%). The board has approved an interim dividend of 40 fils per share for H1 2022.
Key operational highlights and developments for H1 2022 included:
* Acquired approximately 2,766 million shares in Vodafone Group, representing 9.8% of Vodafone’s issued share capital (excluding treasury shares);
* Completed the acquisition of elGrocer, under the Smiles brand;
* Launched region’s first Telco NFT collection to strengthen blockchain legacy;
* Announced the readiness of SmartHub Datacentre as the future telecom hub in the region
* Partnered with G42 to create the UAE and Middle East’s largest data centre provider, Khazna Data Centers, to support the creation of a digital ecosystem
* Entered a new phase of collaboration and strategic partnership with Microsoft to drive innovation and digital transformation
* Open Radio Access Network (RAN) MoU comprising of Middle East operators including e& opened the region’s first centralised test lab in collaboration with TIP and Intel
* Partnered with Meta to drive innovation with enhanced Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) experiences and conversational commerce in its digital communication projects
Since e&’s evolution into a global technology and investment conglomerate earlier this year, the company has continued its journey with steady progress in creating innovative solutions using next-generation technologies and pursuing strong local, regional and international mutually beneficial partnerships that create value and benefit our customers, enterprises and communities, it said.
Jassem Mohamed Obaid Bu Ataba Alzaabi, Chairman of e&, said: “e&’s performance during the first half of the year demonstrates our unwavering commitment, continued efforts and relentless focus on realising our vision of driving the digital future to empower societies. Our success is underpinned by our drive to make a positive change in the societies we serve while adding value to our shareholders.
"Our financial performance reinforces e&’s success story and its strong standing, tackling the challenges and rising to every opportunity to execute our ambitious plans we embarked on earlier this year and set the momentum for the remainder of 2022. We have embraced digitisation, with a continuous innovation ethos to charter our course into a more holistic digital transformation for our communities and societies."
Hatem Dowidar, Group CEO of e&, said: "e&’s financial results for the first half of this year are an outcome of our earnest endeavours to drive growth and enhance efficiencies, with a strong commitment to key strategic priorities to enable a better digital future and drive innovation.
"e& achieved good performance despite global economic challenges characterised by soaring inflation, hike in interest rates and foreign currency devaluation. We will remain resilient and see these times as opportunities to deepen our focus and invest in the long term. As we navigate through the new global economic landscape, we will focus on our goal to create and deploy innovative solutions to positively impact people’s lives.
"We have maximised our efforts in growing our core and digital services, by enriching consumers’ value propositions with digital services that cater to their new lifestyles and emerging demands beyond basic telecom services. Our telecoms business has been the growth engine behind our company and its transformation into a techco. This has helped solidify our leadership across our geographic footprint, as well as grow adjacencies organically and through acquisitions."
The e& digital transformation path has accelerated, empowering its customers across the digital marketplace realm, growing in fintech, providing holistic digital solutions and elevating the streaming experience to new heights, he said.
"Our investment in Vodafone, for example, has great potential to drive value for both companies as we explore potential collaboration opportunities in the rapidly developing global telecom market and support the adoption of next-generation technologies. We are confident that the efforts during the first half of 2022 will help us be even better positioned to bring the full potential of the digital world to our customers across all segments by strategically building blocks that enable a future-ready business model," said Dowidar. - TradeArabia News Service
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