Pay-TV operator, Multichoice Group, has revealed that it repatriated $184m (about N192.09bn) from Nigeria in the financial year ended March 2024.
This was disclosed in its consolidated financial statements released on Wednesday for the period under review.
The amount remitted was higher than that of the previous year.
“The group remitted $184m from Nigeria during FY24 (FY23: USD132m) at an average rate of N1044:USD (FY23: NGN684:USD). In the process, it incurred remittance losses of $59m), compared to $132m in FY23, when there was a greater divergence between the official and parallel exchange rates.
“The group held $39m in cash in Nigeria at year-end, down from $104m at end FY23, a consequence of consistent focus on remitting cash and the impact of translating the balance at the weaker naira,” the report partly read.
In the year, the group reported a 13 per cent drop in subscribers in Nigeria, Angola, Kenya, and Zambia.
The depreciation of local currencies in those markets, including Kenya, had a 32 per cent impact on the Group’s USD revenues.
South Africa, on the other hand, saw only a five per cent decline due to a “strong focus on retention initiatives.”
Blaming the economy for the decline in subscriber base in Nigeria which is one of its biggest markets, Multichoice said, “The group’s nine per cent decline in active subscribers was mainly due to a 13 per cent decline in the Rest of Africa business as mass-market customers in countries like Nigeria had to prioritise basic necessities over entertainment.
“FY24 presented the toughest set of macro-economic conditions for the Rest of Africa business since 2016. The official and parallel naira exchange rates reached peaks of N1600:1USD and N1900:USD respectively in February 2024, with several other African markets also experiencing extreme foreign exchange depreciation. This resulted in a translation impact for the segment’s USD revenues of 32 per cent. High double-digit inflation in many of the group’s core markets has led to immense pressure on customer spending power. This, combined with the benefit of the FIFA World Cup and Nigerian elections in the FY23 base, resulted in the active subscriber base falling by 1.2m to 8.1m at the end of FY24.”
The economic situation in Nigeria has worsened in recent times as the inflationary trend continues to strengthen and food inflation remains high.
As of April, the inflation figure stood at 33.69 per cent.
Analysing further the impact of the tough economy, Multichoice said, “Subscriber growth is typically more muted in a year that follows the FIFA World Cup, but FY24 came in below trend as the subscriber base declined year on year in the face of a deteriorating macro and consumer environment.
“Despite the typical resilience of pay-TV in a downturn, many of our would-be customers cannot afford to consistently pay for our product or choose not to subscribe when power availability is unreliable.
“The group has largely focused on its 90-day subscriber metric since listing in order to provide shareholders and market observers with a subscriber metric that looks through the monthly volatility in the subscriber base.”
According to the firm, its management is increasingly managing the business on the basis of active subscribers to optimise retention and activity rates from month to month in a low-growth environment.
“As a result, the group is focusing and commenting on active subscribers rather than 90-day active subscribers but will continue to disclose both metrics for continuity,” it added.
In February 2024, the group announced that it had reached a settlement with the Federal Inland Revenue Service concerning the tax assessments raised in April 2021 on MultiChoice Nigeria Limited and in June 2021 on MultiChoice Africa Holdings BV.
The parties (FIRS, MCN and MAH) concluded a ‘without prejudice or precedent’ agreement in full and final settlement of all matters in dispute.
The group has agreed to pay a total tax amount of N35.4bn (USD37.3m).
In Nigeria, Multichoice had increased its DStv and GOtv bouquet prices three times in the last year.
Also, a Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal sitting in Abuja last Friday ordered Multichoice to give Nigerians a one-month free subscription on DSTV and GOTV, after the company failed to comply with an order restraining it from implementing new prices based on a case filed by a Nigerian customer of the company.
Meanwhile, the group has entered into a Cooperation Agreement with Groupe Canal+ SA (Canal+) concerning Canal+’s mandatory offer for the group.
That followed a ruling by the Takeover Regulation Panel of South Africa, which required Canal+ to pursue a mandatory offer after it acquired an interest of more than 35 per cent in MultiChoice Group.
Canal+ has also increased its shareholding in the group to 45.20 per cent.
The group reported a net decline in group revenues of five per cent due to inflation-led pricing, the combination of foreign exchange headwinds and a lower subscriber base.
