In a wide-ranging cover story in Financial Mail, specialist IT writer Mudiwa Gavaza looks at the potential turnaround of the telecoms sector under a new Minister. One idea mooted is for internet companies to pay for part of the upkeep and expansion of telecoms networks in the same way as vehicle owners pay taxes to keep national roads in good repair. Mergence Head: Equities, Peter Takaendesa, made input into the article, commenting on the growth potential of mobile service providers. He says that Vodacom and MTN still have strong growth potential in their rest of Africa operations, particularly in mobile data and fintech. Service revenue growth is likely to remain in double digits for those regions in local currencies, although unfortunately regulatory and currency risks remain high.

MTN cuts capex in SA to R6billion
Reporting on its financial results, MTN said that the post-paid, enterprise, wholesale, digital and fintech segments all recorded good growth