The Ethiopian expansion weighed down Safaricom Plc's half year performance, with net profit dropping 10 per cent to Sh33.37 billion.

Speaking at investor briefing on Friday, Safaricom PlC CEO Peter Ndegwa said the company has invested $598 million in Ethiopia operations and is encouraged by the early uptake of services in the new market.

During the period, Safaricom Ethiopia generated Sh98.3 billion in total revenue in the first month of operation.

Safaricom said Kenya net income grew by 0.6 per cent year on year supported by the 4.6 per cent growth in general revenue.

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Safaricom half-year profit declines to Sh33b on Ethiopian expansion

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M-PESA revenue went up 8.7 percent while mobile data grew 11.3 percent in the same period.