Hola,
Victoria from Techpoint here,
Here’s what I’ve got for you:
- Telecel Zimbabwe seeks lifeline with corporate rescue
- Dafe Richards: The 9-to-5 content creator you can’t ignore
- MTN Nigeria bounces back with ₦750B profit
Telecel Zimbabwe seeks lifeline with corporate rescue
Telecel Zimbabwe, the country’s smallest mobile operator, has filed for voluntary corporate rescue, a legal lifeline that shields it from creditors while it tries to get back on its feet. The decision, effective October 27, 2025, was lodged with the Master of the High Court and the Registrar of Companies under Zimbabwe’s Insolvency Act.
In plain terms, this means Telecel now gets some breathing space. No creditors can drag it to court or seize its assets while it attempts a turnaround. The company insists this move isn’t about liquidation but rehabilitation, a last-ditch effort to save a brand that once rivalled Econet and NetOne.
Once the country’s second-largest mobile operator, Telecel has been on a downward slide for years, battling under-investment, shareholder squabbles, and a failing network. The government now owns 60% through state-run Zarnet, but that hasn’t stopped the bleeding. The telco has just 319,548 active users, less than 2% of the market, and only 17 LTE base stations, compared to Econet’s 1,700.
Telecel’s subscriber base just keeps shrinking. The struggling telco lost 11.7% of its users in Q1 2025 and another 5% in Q2, dropping from 336,559 to 319,548 active lines, per Zimbabwe’s telecoms regulator. Blame it on poor service, endless downtime, and patchy connectivity, customers have simply had enough. With less than 2% of the market now, Telecel has gone from being Zimbabwe’s second-largest operator to operating at the scale of a small Internet provider, while Econet and NetOne dominate with 73% and 25% shares, respectively.
The company hopes the corporate rescue process will buy it time to restructure debt, secure new investment, and stabilise operations. Whether that’s enough to revive Zimbabwe’s oldest struggling operator remains to be seen.
Dafe Richards: The 9-to-5 content creator you can’t ignore
When Dafe Richards swapped his Food and Nutrition degree for a career in marketing, he didn’t know he was cooking up a whole new recipe for creativity. Today, the Nigerian content creator and digital marketer is known for his hilarious, relatable takes on 9-5 life, content that’s earned him hundreds of thousands of views online.
“I actually studied Food and Nutrition,” he laughs. “But somehow, I ended up in marketing.” That “somehow” turned out to be a career-defining twist. Working with influencers early in his career taught him how creators think and eventually turned him into one.
His content journey officially took off in 2021 when he got a new phone, a tripod, and a ring light. “That was my starter pack,” he says. He started making videos, stopped for a bit, then came back in 2025 with a clear focus: making work-life content funny, relatable, and real. A post about KPIs went viral, and Dafe knew he’d found his lane.
Interestingly, his 9-5 job and creator life now blend seamlessly. “My marketing background gives me an edge,” he explains. “I understand audience behaviour, engagement, and storytelling, which helps me create content that actually connects.”
Dafe’s earliest tech memory? A VHS player. “Light went off while I was watching a movie, and I tried to pull the cassette out,” he recalls, laughing. “Of course, it broke.” From breaking gadgets to breaking the Internet, Dafe’s story is one of creativity meeting curiosity.
Now, if you’re curious to know more about your favourite content creator, read Delight’s latest edition of After Hours.
MTN Nigeria bounces back with ₦750B profit
MTN Nigeria is back in the black, and not just by a little. The telecom giant posted a profit after tax of ₦750.2 billion for the nine months ended September 2025, marking a major comeback after two straight years of losses. That’s a huge turnaround from the ₦514.9 billion loss it recorded in 2024 and ₦137 billion in 2023.
The rebound didn’t just happen by chance. The naira’s gradual recovery and falling inflation have given the economy some breathing space. From ₦1,535 to a dollar at the end of 2024, the naira firmed up to ₦1,475 by September 2025, while inflation cooled from 34.8% to 18%. Those shifts gave MTN’s numbers a much-needed lift.
MTN’s service revenue also skyrocketed, up 57.5% to ₦3.7 trillion. Data remains king, pulling in ₦1.9 trillion, while voice services followed with ₦1.3 trillion. The telco’s data subscribers grew 12.8% to 51.1 million, and data traffic jumped 36.3% year-on-year. With more people streaming, scrolling, and surfing, MTN also ramped up its infrastructure investment; capex spending jumped 248% to ₦757.4 billion.
CEO Karl Toriola said the company’s spending spree is all about improving connectivity and maintaining quality service. “We’re committed to building sustainable communities and ensuring better connectivity,” he said. Still, MTN plans to dial back its capex a bit in the last quarter to stay on track with its full-year goals.
MTN’s fintech arm, MoMo, is also seeing bright days. Active wallets grew 1.6% to 2.9 million, and fintech revenue shot up 72.5% in nine months. With this kind of momentum, MTN looks set to close the year strong as long as the naira and inflation keep playing nice.
In case you missed it
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Have a productive week!
Victoria Fakiya for Techpoint Africa
