A large telecom company in Africa, AXIAN Telecom, has bought an 8% share in the popular online shopping platform Jumia. This means AXIAN now owns a small part of the company. The announcement was made on Monday and the details were shared with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which keeps records of company ownership for public companies.
Why Did AXIAN Telecom Invest in Jumia?
The CEO of AXIAN Telecom, Hassan Jaber, explained why they decided to invest in Jumia. He said they were impressed by:
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Jumia’s digital retail system
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Its payment service called JumiaPay
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Its strong delivery and logistics operations
He said that Jumia is in a good position to help more people across Africa access financial and digital services, which fits well with what AXIAN Telecom believes in.
He also mentioned that AXIAN fully supports Jumia’s long-term plans and wants to help the company grow.
Jumia’s Financial Performance: Mixed Signals
Even though Jumia reported that its revenue dropped by 17% to $36.5 million, things aren’t all bad. When looking at revenue using constant exchange rates (not affected by currency changes), Jumia actually grew by 15%. This means the business is doing better than it looks, but the value of local currencies in some countries (like Nigeria and Egypt) has dropped, which affects the numbers.
AXIAN’s Bigger Mission: Building Africa’s Digital Future
AXIAN Telecom said this investment in Jumia is part of its ongoing efforts to support digital growth in Africa. It already works in countries like Madagascar, Tanzania, and Togo, and offers services under brands like:
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Yas (mobile network)
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Mixx by Yas (fintech and financial services)
AXIAN wants to help people in Africa get better access to energy, money services, and internet, especially in areas where these are still hard to reach.
The company is a part of AXIAN Group Limited, which operates in 32 countries around Africa and the Indian Ocean.
What This Means for Jumia
This new investment gives Jumia a new chance to bounce back from recent struggles. AXIAN’s support could help the company:
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Improve its financial situation – With falling revenues and past investors pulling out, Jumia now has a powerful new partner to help steady the business.
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Boost investor confidence – The move might encourage other investors to take another look at Jumia.
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Strengthen its services – With AXIAN’s experience in mobile networks and fintech, Jumia can improve its payment system (JumiaPay), logistics, and overall platform.
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Compete better with new rivals – Companies like Temu are starting to gain attention in Africa. This partnership can help Jumia stay ahead.
Jumia’s Recent Challenges and Strategy Shift
Over the past few years, Jumia has faced several problems, including leadership changes, declining sales, and tough competition.
In 2022, Francis Dufay became the acting CEO and was later confirmed as the permanent CEO. Since then, the company has been working on:
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Cutting costs
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Simplifying its operations
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Focusing on its strongest markets
As part of this plan, Jumia shut down its business in Tunisia and South Africa. The company said those markets weren’t bringing in much profit and didn’t have much room to grow.
Now, Jumia is focusing on countries where it performs best—Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt, and Morocco.
Big Losses, But Signs of Hope
In the most recent quarter (Q1 2025), Jumia’s revenue dropped by 26% compared to the previous year. That brought revenue down to $36.3 million. It also had an operating loss of $18.7 million, much worse than the $8.3 million loss in the first quarter of 2024.
The company’s adjusted EBITDA loss (a key measure of how much money a company is losing in its daily operations) also increased to $15.7 million, compared to $4.3 million last year.
However, there was some good news: Jumia’s loss before taxes improved a lot. It dropped from $39.3 million in Q1 2024 to $16.5 million in Q1 2025. This is a 58% improvement (or 25% when looking at constant currency). A big reason for this improvement was that Jumia had lower financing costs, especially because of less currency trouble in countries like Nigeria and Egypt this time around.
Conclusion: A Fresh Start for Jumia
AXIAN Telecom’s investment in Jumia could mark the beginning of a stronger phase for the African e-commerce giant. Despite recent losses and difficult decisions, the partnership brings:
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New resources
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Fresh investor interest
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Expertise in digital systems and fintech
All of this could help Jumia improve its services and compete better in Africa’s growing e-commerce space.
The path ahead won’t be easy, but with support from AXIAN Telecom and a sharper focus on profitable markets, Jumia may be able to rebuild and grow stronger than before.
