AFRICA’S mobile giant MTN retained its ranking as the continent’s most valuable brand and retail bank Capitec overtook Vodacom to be crowned Africa’s strongest brand in the Brand Finance 2021 Top 150 survey.
According to the 2021 Brand Finance Africa Top 150 survey MTN was this week named Africa’s most valuable brand despite the group recording a 19 percent decline value to $2.7 billion (R41bn). MTN South Africa also towered above competitors on home soil and held on to its decade-long reign as South Africa’s most valuable brand.
South African companies dominated the survey with a total of 81 brands featured to the value of $29bn, equating to 73 percent of the total brand value. MTN and Vodacom with a brand value of $1.7bn led the way. Major South African banks FNB (brand value $1.3bn), Old Mutual (brand value $1.3bn) and Standard Bank ($1.3bn) completed the top five.
Brand Finance managing director Richard Haigh said the total value of Africa’s top 150 most valuable brands fell by 12 percent from $45.5bn in 2020 to $40bn in 2021.
“The Covid-19 pandemic has played a key role in the downturn in the brand value of Africa’s top brands. Lockdown measures and travel bans were implemented throughout the year and across the continent, creating uncertainty and impacting brands’ ability to do business as usual,” Haigh said.
Despite topping the rankings, 2021 was a tumultuous year for MTN as it grappled with several scandals from its money mobile services being hacked in Uganda, to being accused of price discrimination practices alongside telecom rival and second-ranked Vodacom.
MTN also began to scale down its operations, announcing its exit from the Middle East, in order to focus and build further across Africa.
“With the recent appointment of Ralph Mupita to the helm as chief executive, as well as the successful launch of its 5G network across major South African cities, MTN will hope to use these developments as a springboard to capture some of its lost brand value moving forward,” said the survey.
Brand value is defined as the “net economic benefit that a brand owner would achieve by licensing the brand in the open market”.
Commenting on the survey Mupita said MTN was both humbled and inspired by the confidence its customers and broader stakeholders continue to place in the MTN brand.
“At the core, a brand is about exceeding promises, expectations and delivering true value,” Mupita said.
According to the Brand Finance Global Brand Equity Monitor, Capitec is one of the five most reputable banking brands in the world.
Reputation is highly correlated with brand consideration.
BUSINESS REPORT