Kenyan Treasury set to receive Sh40bn from Safaricom

Kenya’s Treasury is anticipated to receive Sh40bn (US$398mn) from Safaricom, the telecommunications company.

The governmental department is set to accept the most financing from the firm’s pre-tax profit, obtain half of Safaricom’s Sh80bn ($796mn).

The money will be paid in taxes and dividends for the financial year ending 31 March 2018.

The calculations mark the largest amount the Treasury in Kenya has received from a single corporation.

Safaricom made a 14.1% increase in net profit during the review period, reaching Sh55.2bn ($550.5mn).

The company also noted a growth in its total revenue of 9.8%, hitting Sh233.7bn ($2.3bn) – setting a new record for Kenya.

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The firm has paid Sh24.62bn ($245mn) in taxes during the financial year, its records show.

M-Pesa, Safaricom’s mobile data subsidiary, is thought to have driven the growth.

“M-Pesa and mobile data continued to be the drivers of growth in the year,” stated Sateesh Kamath, Chief Financial Officer of Safaricom.

“Contrary to global trends, voice revenues also grew. We also recorded revenue growth in fixed data, a relatively new business, which is already accounting for three per cent of our service revenue.”

“We continue to invest a significant portion of our capital expenditure (capex) to enhance the data capabilities in the network.”