Telkom SA SOC Limited is South Africa’s incumbent telecommunications operator, reporting group revenue of R43.9 billion for the financial year ended 31 March 2025. The company operates through three principal business units: Openserve (wholesale infrastructure), BCX (enterprise ICT solutions), and Telkom Consumer (mobile and fixed consumer services). Telkom’s data-led strategy has driven a shift from legacy voice revenue toward fibre, mobile data, and managed IT services, with adjusted EBITDA growing 25.1% to R11.8 billion.
Openserve: Wholesale Infrastructure
Openserve is South Africa’s largest open-access wholesale network infrastructure provider. The division builds and maintains the country’s core fibre backbone and last-mile access networks, selling wholesale connectivity to ISPs, mobile operators, and enterprise customers on an open-access basis.
Fibre-related data revenue grew 15.5% in the 2025 financial year, driven by a 3.4% increase in fibre subscribers and a 12.4% uplift in average revenue per user (ARPU). Openserve’s network simplification and energy transformation programmes have reduced operating costs while ongoing fibre investment delivered capital intensity of 20.5%.
For telecoms resellers, Openserve’s open-access model is significant: ISPs and service providers can purchase wholesale fibre connectivity and resell it under their own brand, making Openserve one of the key wholesale infrastructure partners in the South African market.
BCX: Enterprise ICT Solutions
BCX is Telkom’s enterprise ICT division, providing managed IT services, cloud solutions, cybersecurity, systems integration, and digital workplace solutions to corporate and government clients. BCX reported revenue of R12.3 billion for the 2025 financial year, a 4.4% decline as the division undergoes a strategic transition toward higher-margin services.
BCX’s portfolio includes managed connectivity, data centre and cloud hosting, unified communications, IT security, and application management. The division serves large enterprises and government departments with end-to-end ICT solutions, from network infrastructure through to application-level managed services.
Telkom Consumer
Telkom Consumer grew operating revenue 5.6% to R27.8 billion, driven by advanced data analytics, product portfolio optimisation, and expansion of distribution channels. The consumer division operates Telkom Mobile, which has established itself as South Africa’s third mobile network, competing against Vodacom and MTN with a value-oriented positioning.
Telkom’s consumer fibre and LTE/5G fixed wireless access products serve the residential broadband market, while its mobile offering focuses on data-led packages that appeal to price-conscious consumers and small businesses.
Why SA Resellers Should Understand Telkom
Telkom’s relevance to independent telecoms resellers operates on multiple levels. Openserve’s open-access wholesale fibre network is a primary infrastructure source for ISPs and resellers delivering broadband services. BCX competes with independent IT service providers in the enterprise managed services market. And Telkom Consumer’s mobile and fixed products compete directly with the connectivity offerings that many resellers sell.
Understanding Telkom’s wholesale pricing through Openserve, BCX’s enterprise positioning, and the consumer division’s market pricing is essential for resellers positioning their own services in the South African market.
More information is available at telkom.co.za.
About the Author
Mechelle Gindra
Mechelle Gindra is the managing editor and lead content strategist at Telecoms-Channel, South Africa's dedicated intelligence platform for telecoms resellers, ICT distributors, and channel partners. She oversees the editorial team's AI-assisted content production pipeline, ensuring vendor news, market analysis, and regulatory updates are accurate, timely, and actionable for the SA telecoms channel community. With deep expertise in the South African telecoms reseller ecosystem, Mechelle directs coverage of vendor partner programmes, ICASA regulatory developments, wholesale market dynamics, and channel business strategy. She is responsible for maintaining Telecoms-Channel's editorial standards, fact-checking processes, and corrections policy.
