Business Breakdowns
Episode 109 MTN Group: Connecting Africa
Business Breakdowns

Episode 109: MTN Group: Connecting Africa

Business Breakdowns

Episode 109

MTN Group: Connecting Africa

Benjamin Isaac is the founder and Chief Investment Officer at Brizo Capital. We cover MTN's consumer experience and mobile money business, compare the business models of emerging market Telcos with legacy carriers in the US, and explore the unique dynamics of operating in Africa.

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(00:02:24) - An overview of
MTN Group
today

(00:04:13) - Contextualizing the scale and trajectory of the business vis-à-vis

 its strong African demographic

(00:05:52) - MTN Group’s unique position in the value chain

(00:10:37) - The origin and the evolution of MTN Group

(00:13:19) - The business’ current and future revenue models and how they differ domestically and internationally

(00:15:52) - Comparing ARPU in North America and Africa

(00:18:03) - His take on why the international fintech market is developing as rapidly as it is

(00:22:48) - Understanding use cases for MTN Group’s mobile money products

(00:27:57) - The low market share held by credit card companies in Africa, and the opportunity it represents for MTN Group

(00:29:07) - Regional differences, local competition, and the overall market structure

(00:30:42) - The architects, visionaries, and capital allocators behind MTN Group

(00:34:33) - What structural separation means for a business like MTN Group

(00:36:31) - Measuring the size and scale of the business

(00:38:53) - Investing in emerging markets

(00:42:59) - The importance of location in a mobile fintech company listing

(00:45:09) - Risks and challenges facing MTN Group

(00:49:53) - How African mobile and fintech markets fared during COVID

(00:51:23) - Framing the business’ current and future picture of profitability

(00:56:23) - Lessons learned in studying the story of MTN Group

MTN Group: Connecting Africa

Introduction

Zack
This is Zack Fuss, an investor at Irenic Capital. And today, we're breaking down MTN Group. MTN is the largest mobile network operator in Africa and one of the 10 largest in the world. It has over 270 million subscribers, operates in 20 different markets and is one of the largest fintechs in the continent.

To break down MTN, I'm joined by Benjamin Isaac, Founder and Chief Investment Officer at Brizo Capital. We unpack their mobile money business in some detail, contrast the development of telcos in Africa with what we've experienced in the U.S. and explore the competitive dynamics of operating in Africa. Please enjoy this breakdown of MTN.

Business History and Context

Zack
Ben, thank you for joining us to break down MTN Group, a business that you're intimately familiar with but one that's likely somewhat foreign, no pun intended, to our audience. So maybe just to start at a very basic level, what is MTN Group?

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