How is Singtel tracking its financial milestones under Singtel28?
FY2025 was a pivotal year as we transitioned from the transformative phase of our strategic reset into full execution of our Singtel28 plan. We made strong headway on our financial and strategic objectives, reinforcing our momentum in building sustainable, long-term value amid a constantly evolving and dynamic market landscape.
Our disciplined approach to capital management bore fruit once again. We unlocked nearly S$4 billion in proceeds, including S$2 billion from the divestment of a 1.2% stake in Airtel in May 2025. This puts us well past the halfway mark of our initial S$6 billion mid-term asset recycling target, which we have now raised to S$9 billion.
Throughout FY2025, we maintained a strong and resilient balance sheet, ending the year with S$2.8 billion in cash and generating S$2.5 billion in free cash flow. With most of our debt on fixed rates, we are well-positioned to weather market volatility.
Looking ahead, we remain confident in delivering high single-digit EBIT growth and a low double-digit return on invested capital (ROIC) over the medium term, driven by disciplined capital allocation and scaling of our growth engines, Nxera and NCS, as well as our digital banking ventures.
With the asset recycling target raised to S$9 billion, how will the proceeds be used to drive growth and deliver shareholder returns?
We have raised our mid-term asset recycling target as a measured, strategic step to reinforce our Singtel28 objectives to unlock value and fund future growth. Building on the steady momentum we have established, we are well-positioned to realise greater value from our recycling initiatives, which include well-paced sales of stakes in listed companies we own as well as sales of underutilised fixed assets, infrastructure and non-core assets. These initiatives also include deepening capital partnerships in areas where we see potential to scale.
Proceeds from asset recycling will be thoughtfully deployed to fund capital returns through the value realisation dividend and our newly launched value realisation share buyback programme, which will see up to S$2 billion worth of shares repurchased and cancelled over the next three years. This will help lift both earnings per share and dividends per share in a sustainable and disciplined way. At the same time, asset recycling gives us the flexibility to reallocate capital to scale growth businesses in digital infrastructure and enterprise services through Nxera and NCS.
Ultimately, our active capital management approach is about changing the complexion of the Group to support a sustained uplift in underlying profits by strengthening business performance and scaling growth engines through targeted acquisitions.
How are Singtel’s regional associates leveraging market trends to drive growth for the Group?
Our regional associates remain strong and strategic contributors to the Group’s performance. In FY2025, their pre-tax profit contribution rose 7% and would have been 10% in constant currency terms, driven by solid operating results from Airtel and AIS. Collectively, the regional associates contributed S$1.3 billion in dividends and accounted for more than 70% of the Group’s total underlying profit.
These results reflect ongoing market recovery, cost discipline and margin improvements, positioning them well to navigate changing market dynamics. Our regional associates are also investing in growth areas like fixed broadband and enterprise services. Telkomsel is gaining traction in its IndiHome broadband unit, while Globe continues to scale its fintech arm, Mynt, whose valuation has doubled to US$5 billion in its last funding round.
We continue to unlock value through active portfolio management exemplified by the partial divestment of our Airtel stake and the Intouch-Gulf amalgamation. These moves highlight our ability to remain strategically agile while delivering shareholder value.
While market conditions remain dynamic, we are confident that our associates are well-positioned to adapt and deliver sustainable long-term value.
As Group CFO, what are the strategic priorities moving forward to ensure Singtel delivers long-term, sustainable value to shareholders?
We are laser-focused on lifting operating performance and improving margins, which are core to achieving our Singtel28 goals. At the same time, we will continue to drive ROIC and free cash flow through disciplined execution and cost control.
Capital management remains key. We are taking a balanced and proactive approach, scaling businesses with long-term potential while returning value to shareholders through dividends and buybacks.
Strong strategic partnerships are another important growth driver. Many of our partnerships, particularly with our regional associates, have been nurtured over decades, some for more than 30 years. We are actively deepening these alliances beyond our core telco business, leveraging combined strengths to unlock new opportunities and synergies across the Group. The new joint venture between NCS and our long-standing associate in the Philippines, Globe, to accelerate digital transformation throughout the region is a key case in point.
We are also strengthening relationships with capital partners. A prime example is our collaboration with KKR, a like-minded partner that shares our ambitions and brings vital capital to support our data centre ventures. Together, we committed S$1.75 billion to ST Telemedia Global Data Centres, reinforcing our joint ambition to scale digital infrastructure across the region.
We are also making strong strides with Nxera. In Singapore, we secured a S$643 million green loan to fund DC Tuas, a next-generation data centre designed for high-performance computing with lower emissions, and pre-sales have been encouraging. In Thailand, we worked with our partners to secure a THB 7.3 billion (approximately S$300 million) project loan for our new 25MW facility — a market first.
In digital banking, GXS, our joint venture with Grab, now serves over 3 million customers across Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia. By providing accessible, everyday financial services, GXS is advancing digital inclusion across the region. The acquisition of Validus Capital’s Singapore business has strengthened its SME lending proposition, supporting small business growth and inclusive economic development through digital innovation.
As we chart the road ahead, we remain focused on executing with discipline, scaling with purpose to support our mid-term ROIC target and maintaining resilient free cash flow to deliver long-term sustainable returns for shareholders.
