 | |
| Company type | Publicsubsidiary |
|---|---|
| JSE:VOD | |
| ISIN | |
| Industry | Telecommunications |
| Founded | 1994; 32 years ago (1994) |
| Founders | Alan Knott-Craig Sr. |
| Headquarters | |
Area served | Africa |
Key people | Shameel Joosub (CEO) Till Streichert (CFO) Dejan Kastelic (CTO) Phillip Moleketi (chairman) |
| Products | Mobile telephony Internet services |
| Revenue | |
| |
| |
| Total assets |
|
| Total equity |
|
Number of employees | 7,554 (2018)[3] |
| Parent | Vodafone Group plc (65.1%) |
| Website | vodacom |
Vodacom Group Limited is aSouth Africanmobilecommunications company, providingvoice,messaging,data andconverged services to over 130 million customers acrossAfrica.
From its roots inSouth Africa, Vodacom has grown its operations to include networks inEgypt,Tanzania, theDemocratic Republic of the Congo,Mozambique, andLesotho, and providesbusiness services to customers in over 32 African countries, includingNigeria,Zambia,Angola,Kenya,Ghana,Côte d'Ivoire, andCameroon.[2][1]
It was owned in a 50/50 partnership by the South African telecommunications giantTelkom and British multinational operatorVodafone.[4] On 6 November 2008, Vodafone announced that it had agreed to increase its stake to 64.5%, and Telkom said that it would spin off its remaining holding by listing it on theJohannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE).[2][5] On 1 April 2011, Vodacom officially unveiled its new change in branding from blue to red, using the same style as its parent company, Vodafone.[6]
Vodacom provides coverage toMount Kilimanjaro, which was the highest point in the world to be covered byGSM, untilAxiata (through its subsidiaryNcell) provided coverage at the top ofMount Everest, the highest point in the world. Vodacom was aided by its optimistic advertisements at the early stages of the democratic South Africa, including theyebo gogo campaign which is still in effect today in Africa. Vodacom is the leading cellular network in South Africa with a market share of over 40% and more than 45 million users.[7] The company has an estimated market share of 58% and more than 103 million customers across Africa.[8]
In 2021, Vodacom proposed a merger with fibre group Maziv.[9] In October 2024, the South African Competition Tribunal blocked the proposed merger.[10] In November 2024, Vodacom said it would not look into other M&A deals.[11]
In August 2025, Vodacom announced that it had made South Africa's first native call over 5G. The call used Vodacom’s Single Packet Core, and was made using Vodacom's test network - a step towards the company officially rolling out native 5G call services in SA.[12]
In the same month, Vodacom's proposed acquisition of a 30% to 34.95% shareholding in fiber network operator Maziv (the parent company ofVumatel and Dark Fibre Africa), was approved by the South African Competition Appeals Court.[13]
The Court set aside the order of the Tribunal that prohibited the merger. However, on top of existing terms that were proposed, to limit anti-competitiveness in the South African fiber market, additional concessions were agreed upon to limit Vodacom’s influence over Maziv, and expand the former's capital expenditure commitments.[13]
In December 2025, Vodacom announced its intention to increase its shareholding in Kenyan telecoms companySafaricom by 20%, taking its total ownership to a controlling shareholding of 54.9%. The deal also includes an upfront payment ofR5.3 billion to secure the right to future Safaricom dividends that would otherwise go to the Kenyan government. At the time of the announcement, Safaricom held a 60% mobile market share in Kenya, and was valued at around R148 billion.[14]
Vodacom South Africa provides3G,4G, andUMTS networks in South Africa, and also offersHSPA+ (21.1 Mbit/s),HSUPA (42 Mbit/s, 2100 MHz), Wi-Fi,WiMAX, andLTE services. Vodacom was the first cellular provider to introduce LTE in South Africa.[15] On 21 October 2015, Vodacom launched its fibre product to the home user.[16] On 7 April 2017, Vodacom's4G+ network inBrooklyn Mall,Pretoria achieved 240 Mbit/s in a speed test.[17] In early 2020 Vodacom also became the second network operator in Africa to launch a live 5G network, initially available in Johannesburg, Pretoria andCape Town.[18]
As at March 2023, the companies that comprised the Vodacom Group include, but are not limited to, the following:
| Name of member company | Vodacom Group's ownership (%) | Country | No. of employees | No. of customers | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vodacom (Pty) Ltd | 100 | South Africa | 5,007 | 44,200,000 | [2] |
| VM, SA | 85 | Mozambique | 530 | 10,700,000 | [2] |
| Vodacom Lesotho (Pty) Ltd | 80 | Lesotho | 209 | 1,700,000 | [2] |
| Vodacom Tanzania Ltd | 75 | Tanzania | 537 | 16,700,000 | [2] |
| Vodafone Egypt Telecommunications S.A.E. | 55 | Egypt | Unavailable | 45,500,000 | |
| Vodacom Congo (RDC) s.p.r.l. | 51 | DRC | 578 | 21,000,000 | [2] |
| Safaricom | 34.94 | Kenya | 6,477 | 43,900,000 | [19] |
| Safaricom Telecommunications Ethiopia | 6.20 | Ethiopia | Unavailable | 2,100,000 | [20] |
The shares of Vodacom Group are listed and traded on the JSE, under theticker symbol: VOD. The shareholding in the group's stock was as depicted in the table below in May 2022.[21]
| Name of owner | Shareholding (%) |
|---|---|
| Vodafone Investments SA (Pty) Ltd | 65.1 |
| Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF), wholly owned bySouth African Government | 13.54 |
| YeboYethu Investment Company (Pty) Ltd | 6.23 |
| Wheatfield Investments 276 (Pty) Ltd | 0.84 |
| Institutional investors | 15.76 |
| Retail positions | 2.96 |
| Others | 0.17 |
| Total | 100.00 |
Institutional investors include, in order of held stock, thePublic Investment Corporation (also known as PIC, wholly owned by the South African Government),Lazard (US),Blackrock (US),The Vanguard Group (US),Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (also known as GIC,Singapore),Old Mutual (ZA), Abax (ZA),Sanlam (ZA), andState Street Global Advisors (US).[2]
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Vodacom is a sponsor of many South Africansports.
In provincialrugby union, they are the sponsors of thePretoria-based VodacomBlue Bulls and own thenaming rights to the union's home stadium,Loftus Versfeld.
As part of their rugby union sponsorship portfolio, Vodacom has been the title sponsor of theSuper Rugby tournament in South Africa since 1996.
Infootball, they sponsor two clubs in thePremier Soccer League: theKaizer Chiefs andOrlando Pirates. They also sponsor theSouth African Football Association and the national teamsBafana Bafana (men), Amajita (under 20s), and previouslyBanyana Banyana (women). However, competitorMTN was one of the sponsors of the2010 FIFA World Cup held in South Africa.
Past sponsorships include the national rugby union team, theSpringboks, from 1994 to 2017, and the South AfricanShelby Can-Am series between 2000 and 2005.
On May 17, 2009, a court dismissed a jointCongress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) and ICASA application to stop Vodacom's JSE listing. Chegoane Mabelane, the South African article writer and prominent supporter of bothAfrican National Congress (ANC) and its alliance; in one of his articles stated that theinterdict to stop the listing was fair.[22]
In January 2010, theSunday Times alleged thatAlan Knott-Craig (Senior), former Vodacom CEO, helped his son, Alan Knott-Craig with business ventures using Vodacom's resources. He also allegedly awarded a multimillion-rand contract to a marketing and advertising company run by his family members.[23][24][25]
In 2008, former employee Nkosana Makate took Vodacom to court, claiming that the profitable "Please Call Me" message service was originally his invention and demanding compensation. Eight years later, Makate eventually won his case in theConstitutional Court. Makate then entered negotiations with Vodacom for a 15% cut of the R70 billion ($4.74 billion) he claims "Please Call Me" has earned for Vodacom since its inception.
A 2014 judgement in theSouth Gauteng High Court supported Makate's claim to having originated "Please Call Me." The court heard that, in November 2000, Makate had shared his idea (initially termed the "buzz" idea) with Philip Geissler, then board member and director of product development and management at Vodacom. Geissler had agreed to give Makate a cut should the "Please Call Me" innovation prove a success (however, there was no such agreement, written, oral, or implied – and no evidence to support it). Makate's witnesses presented emails sent by Geissler (Geissler was never called totestify by either party, raising suspicion that both parties would not have benefited from what Geissler would say under oath) and an article in Vodacom's "Talk Time" internal newsletter (such newsletter was written, edited, and printed by a third party in Cape Town) which acknowledged and praised Makate for his idea and his contribution to the product.[26]
The court also rejected former CEOAlan Knott-Craig's claim that he had come up with the idea. Knott-Craig had published the claim in his autobiography, and later repeated in court, that he had the idea while watching two security guards trying to communicate on phones without airtime.[27] Yet the High Court found against Makate's claim for compensation, holding Vodacom's argument that Geissler had not had the authority to promise Makate such compensation and that the debt would have expired (in legal terms, been prescribed) within three years.[26]
Makate took the case onappeal, and then took it to theConstitutional Court. In April 2016, JusticeChris Jafta found in Makate's favour and against Vodacom, overturning both judgements by the High Court, finding that Geissler had the authority to promise compensation, and that Makate's case was not based on an unpaid debt. In Jafta's words: “In not compensating the applicant [Makate] [….] Vodacom associated itself with the dishonourable conduct of its former CEO, Mr Knott-Craig and his colleague, Mr Geissler, and this leaves a sour taste in the mouth. It is not the kind of conduct to be expected from an ethical corporate entity.”[28]
In anopen letter to Makate on Facebook, civic society non-profitRight2Know congratulated Makate. Right2Know used the letter to draw attention to thehypocrisy of multinational corporations which claim to support young black South African innovators such as Makate, but whose anti-competitive practices often strangle meaningful innovation. The letter also drew attention to the fact that South Africa's telecommunicationsduopoly (Vodacom–MTN) had led to the kind of unaffordable tariffs which made the "Please Call Me" service so successful with impoverished consumers in the first place.[29]
In October 2013, Vodacom announced it would be acquiringNeotel in a potential US$590 million deal.[30] Even though regulatory approval by theIndependent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) was obtained in 2015, the deal ultimately collapsed in March 2016 after competitors successfully challenged the transfer of Neotel's licenses and spectrum to Vodacom in court.[31][32]
Vodacom launchediPhone 7 in South Africa on 14 October 2016.[33][34] It launched theiPhone Xs andXs Max on 28 September 2018 starting at R21,999 ($1,650) on a 24 month contract.[35]
TheSamsung Galaxy S8 was officially launched on 5 May 2017.[36]
In 2017,TechCrunch reported that Vodacom partnered with GameMine in a $20 million deal to install subscription-based mobile games on Vodacom's smartphones.[37]
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