Bharti Airtel Expands 5G With Bajaj Finance Deal

Key Takeaways

Bharti Airtel is accelerating 5G coverage and service differentiation while lifting its revenue market share to 36%.
The telecom operator is positioning 5G network slicing, enterprise connectivity, and fixed wireless access as primary growth drivers.
Airtel Finance and Bajaj Finance are scaling a co-branded digital lending and EMI ecosystem, creating new monetization channels.

Bharti Airtel is simultaneously expanding 5G scale, premium service differentiation, enterprise solutions, and financial services. While the Indian telecom market has traditionally centered on subscriber additions and tariff cycles, the company is developing a layered strategy targeting multiple revenue streams.

Airtel’s revenue market share has reached 36%, according to a CLSA report dated March 5, 2025, indicating its focus on higher-value subscribers is yielding financial returns. The operator currently counts 342 million mobile subscribers in India, with 70% already using mobile data. Airtel’s 5G rollout is targeting full coverage of urban India and key rural markets, establishing the network foundation for its next deployment phase.

Global telecom operators are shifting focus toward premium connectivity tiers and enterprise use cases to improve average revenue per user (ARPU), according to the GSMA. This industry transition aligns with Airtel’s launch of consumer-facing 5G network slicing for its postpaid customers. As the first Indian telecom operator to launch this capability, Airtel expands a service previously seen in markets like the U.S., U.K., and Singapore. Utilizing the 3GPP 5G System architecture’s standardized slicing approach, Airtel can offer tailored network experiences for premium users and enterprise clients requiring enhanced reliability or priority traffic treatment.

McKinsey reported in 2023 that 5G service differentiation and enterprise connectivity are key enablers for unlocking new telecom revenue pools. Supporting this expansion, Ericsson reported in 2024 that global 5G subscriptions are forecast to surpass 5.6 billion by the end of 2029. This baseline growth enlarges the addressable market for premium 5G services like slicing-enabled data plans.

Airtel’s 5G strategy specifically targets enterprise connectivity, with the CLSA report identifying 5G fixed wireless access (FWA) as a primary commercial opportunity. The company is actively targeting top-end subscribers, corporate clients, home broadband users, and convergence services. As domestic interest in industrial automation, private networks, and high-reliability connectivity rises, Airtel is building distinct value tiers across its enterprise portfolio.

Airtel Finance represents a deliberate expansion into digital lending. Through an ongoing partnership with Bajaj Finance, India’s leading non-banking financial company, Airtel offers a co-branded Insta EMI card within its Airtel Thanks app. This integration provides a direct digital channel for lending, EMI conversions, and credit-based purchases. Given Bharti Airtel’s 342 million mobile subscribers, financial analysts note substantial adoption headroom as the platform plans to introduce gold, business, and personal loan products.

A significant portion of Bharti subscribers do not currently overlap with Bajaj Finance customers. This distinct user base provides a large pool for targeted financial product distribution with relatively low acquisition costs. Operators with extensive user engagement platforms frequently utilize these adjacencies to leverage their existing distribution networks and diversify revenue beyond core telecom services.

5G fixed wireless access is positioned to support both retail broadband growth and enterprise campus deployments. As enterprises distribute workloads across hybrid environments, network reliability and speed become strict operational necessities. Market observers like IEEE have noted that combining 5G’s enhanced mobile broadband capabilities with reliability improvements enables new industrial use cases, reinforcing Airtel's focus on enterprise-grade offerings.

Tariff hikes continue to serve as a primary catalyst for the company’s capital capabilities. Mobile tariffs in India remain low by global standards, and periodic adjustments support operator balance sheets for long-term expenditure. The CLSA report indicated that these tariff adjustments allow operators to finance continued network expansion, directly supporting Airtel’s strategy to monetize premium 5G experiences.

By expanding 5G coverage, launching consumer-facing network slicing, deepening enterprise connectivity, and scaling a financial ecosystem alongside Bajaj Finance, Bharti Airtel is building an integrated model for sustained growth. The execution of this strategy depends on enterprise user adoption and strict alignment with evolving industry standards, including the ITU IMT-2020 framework that defines the core 5G use cases.

Editorial oversight by Rich Tehrani — CEO of TMC and creator of ITEXPO.

Disclosure: Rich Tehrani is also CEO of RT Advisors and a Registered Representative offering securities through Four Points Capital Partners LLC (Member FINRA/SIPC). Nothing in this article is an endorsement or recommendation to buy or sell any security or sector mentioned. RT Advisors may have or have had business relationships with companies mentioned in TMC Insight articles. Such relationships do not affect editorial judgment or coverage.