Bharti Airtel has decided to quit the low-margin global wholesale voice and messaging business due to its lack of contribution to value. According to Gopal Vittal, the vice-chairman and managing director of the telecom giant, this was announced during the Q3 earnings call held in February.
He said that the same might hurt the top line for a few quarters for the company, but there will not be much impact on EBITDA since this segment contribution is at a minimum. Vittal has also stated that ARPU in India is still the lowest in the world, which very well warrants tariff correction on viability and sustainability of reasonable return for the industry.
While Vittal mentioned the fact that no new investments in 4G capacity are being made, on the other hand, it is focused on deploying additional 5G radios to meet the increasing device penetration in the market. As a matter of fact, the strategic spending of capex suggests that Airtel is determined to enhance 5G infrastructure.
In a strong financial update, Bharti Airtel said its net profit surged 505% to ₹14,781 crore for the quarter ending December 31, 2024, helped by a one-time gain of ₹7,546 crore booked during the reporting period.
