Legend Internet Posts ₦216.8m Loss as Admin Costs Jump

In Short

• Legend Internet reported a ₦216.8 million loss after tax for the period ended April 2026, versus a ₦32.3 million profit a year earlier.
• After actuarial gains, the loss was reduced to ₦104.8 million.
• Administrative expenses rose 162% year on year to ₦423.8 million.
• The results come ahead of a planned merger with Spectranet, which was expected in Q2 2026 but is not yet finalized.

What Happened

Legend Internet posted a ₦216.8 million loss after tax for the period ended April 2026, based on its financial statement published on the Nigerian Exchange. The company said the period reflected stronger operating fundamentals, even as profitability fell.

Revenue dipped slightly to ₦311.7 million from ₦320 million in the comparable period. The company’s fibre internet product drove most of the earnings at ₦236.7 million, about 76% of revenue. Wholesale bandwidth brought in ₦70 million. Other lines, including Legend Wifi, Legend Pay, and customer premises equipment sales, recorded zero revenue.

The bigger swing was spending. Administrative expenses jumped to ₦423.8 million from ₦161.7 million, a 162% rise. Personnel costs more than doubled to ₦212.5 million from ₦99.3 million, with a larger number of key management staff earning ₦8 million and above.

Legend Internet also disclosed larger balance sheet moves during the nine months to April 2026. It paid ₦1.3 billion to acquire a subsidiary, placed ₦5.52 billion in escrow (money held by a third party until a deal closes), and secured ₦6.88 billion in loan financing.

Why It Matters

Connectivity providers often spend heavily during expansion, but the mix of rising overheads and flat revenue can worry investors. It also raises questions about how quickly new capital and acquisitions can translate into paying customers and higher average revenue per user.

The pending merger with Spectranet is another key variable. If completed, it could reshape Legend Internet’s operating scale and network footprint. Until then, the company will be judged quarter by quarter on whether costs start to track closer to revenue growth.

For Nigerian consumers, the results highlight a broader trend in fixed broadband. Fibre rollout and customer onboarding are expensive, and operators may keep tightening pricing, service bundles, and installation processes to protect margins.