Bharti Airtel Limited FY2026 Annual Report
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Overview
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Detailed Analysis
Sentiment
Mixed
Executive Summary
Bharti Airtel FY2026: Revenue ₹2,109,728 Cr (vs ₹1,729,852 Cr YoY), PAT ₹338,228 Cr (vs ₹374,813 Cr YoY)
In FY2026, Bharti Airtel reported consolidated revenue from operations of ₹2,109,728 Cr versus ₹1,729,852 Cr in FY2025, indicating strong topline growth despite a softer bottom line. Profit for the year declined to ₹338,228 Cr in FY2026 from ₹374,813 Cr in FY2025, with higher depreciation and amortisation of ₹527,108 Cr versus ₹455,703 Cr impacting reported profitability. India mobile monetisation improved, with ARPU rising to ₹257 from ₹245, supported by continued 5G customer adoption and network expansion. Balance sheet leverage improved with net debt reduction and a lower net debt to...Consolidated revenue from operationsp.216
₹2,109,728 Crvs ₹1,729,852 Cr in FY2025
Profit for the year (consolidated)p.216
₹338,228 Crvs ₹374,813 Cr in FY2025
Consolidated EBITDAaLp.92
₹1,079,460 millionvs ₹932,961 million in FY2025
India mobile ARPUp.92
₹257vs ₹245 in FY2025
India customer basep.4
482.4 Mn5G customersp.12
188 MnOperating free cashflow (EBITDAaL - Capex)p.14
over ₹604 billionCapital expenditure
₹475,218 millionKey Highlights
10
Airtel’s revenue market share reached an all-time high of 39.7% in FY2026, indicating continued share gains in the Indian telecom market.
Homes net additions were a record 4.2 million in FY2026, taking the homes customer base to 14.2 million as of March 31, 2026.
Airtel rolled out its highest-ever fiber home passes at ~8 million in FY2026, supporting the scaling of its Homes business.
Nxtra completed a US$1 billion fund raise from marquee investors in FY2026 to support data centre expansion.
Airtel’s Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) offerings were live in over 3,300 cities in FY2026, expanding addressable broadband coverage beyond fibre footprint.
The AI-powered spam/fraud solution identified 86.7 Bn SPAM voice calls and 3.5 Bn SPAM SMSs and blocked 1.1 Mn fraud links since launch, supporting customer experience and fraud risk mitigation.
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Key Highlights
10
Airtel’s revenue market share reached an all-time high of 39.7% in FY2026, indicating continued share gains in the Indian telecom market.
Homes net additions were a record 4.2 million in FY2026, taking the homes customer base to 14.2 million as of March 31, 2026.
Airtel rolled out its highest-ever fiber home passes at ~8 million in FY2026, supporting the scaling of its Homes business.
Nxtra completed a US$1 billion fund raise from marquee investors in FY2026 to support data centre expansion.
Airtel Africa reported revenues of ₹568,064 million in FY2026 versus ₹418,795 million in FY2025, providing incremental growth support from the Africa segment.
Airtel’s Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) offerings were live in over 3,300 cities in FY2026, expanding addressable broadband coverage beyond fibre footprint.
The AI-powered spam/fraud solution identified 86.7 Bn SPAM voice calls and 3.5 Bn SPAM SMSs and blocked 1.1 Mn fraud links since launch, supporting customer experience and fraud risk mitigation.
Airtel Payments Bank crossed about 120 million monthly transacting users in FY2026 with year-on-year growth of 24.8%, indicating strengthening engagement and scale.
Indus Towers reported revenues of ₹324,931 million in FY2026 compared to ₹301,228 million in FY2025, reflecting continued stability in the towers associate performance.
Crisil upgraded the long-term bank facilities rating to ‘Crisil AAA/Stable’ from ‘Crisil AA+/Positive’, strengthening credit profile signalling for lenders and bond investors.
MD&A Insights
4
Management disclosed cumulative investments of over ₹1 trillion over the last three years across Mobility, Homes, Airtel Business (including global connectivity and data centres), and Digital TV, underscoring sustained capex intensity and strategic reinvestment.
Statutory auditors issued unmodified opinions on both standalone and consolidated audited financial results, indicating no qualifications in FY2026 reporting.
Standalone EBITDAaL margin improved to 51.4% in FY2026 from 49.0% in FY2025, reflecting operating leverage and cost actions as described by management.
The company capitalised borrowing costs of ₹Nil in FY2026 versus ₹3,818 million in FY2025, implying lower capitalised finance costs into asset bases during the year.
Guidance & Outlook
3
Nxtra is on track to build approximately 1 GW of capacity over the next few years, signalling multi-year data centre expansion optionality.
Airtel Money Limited received approval to operate as a non-deposit taking NBFC and is planned to be capitalised with ₹20,000 crore over the next few years, creating a pathway for scaling financial services.
Dividend payout is proposed at 1.5x of last year with dividend recommended of ₹24 per fully paid-up equity share and ₹6 per partly paid-up equity share (subject to shareholder approval), indicating shareholder return prioritisation.
Risks & Concerns
5
The company listed key operational risks including Regulatory and Political Uncertainties, Economic Uncertainties, Poor Quality of Networks and IT, Fiercely competitive battleground and Data Loss, which could pressure margins and service continuity.
The company disclosed contingent DoT-related demands of ₹79,403 million with recognised charge of ₹17,914 million and interest aggregating to ₹120,299 million as of March 31, 2026, indicating ongoing regulatory and litigation overhang.
Provisions for sub-judice matters (current) remained elevated at ₹287,918 million as of March 31, 2026 versus ₹298,896 million as of March 31, 2025, reflecting persistent legal exposure.
Loans and advances given to related parties increased to 28.7% of total loans and advances in FY2026 from 6.8% in FY2025, raising governance and credit concentration monitoring needs for investors.
Accounts payables days increased to 74 days in FY2026 from 69 days in FY2025, potentially indicating working-capital stretch or vendor payment cycle elongation.
AI-generated analysis. May contain inaccuracies — verify against original sources.