There was intense speculation at the weekend that the British company was preparing to table a rival offer for MTN, which is holding talks with India’s Bharti Airtel.

But a Vodafone spokesman said: “We have no interest in pursuing a bid for MTN.”

It is thought Vodafone’s internal mergers and acquisitions team looked at making an offer but ruled it out. External City advisers were not brought in.

MTN was put in play last week when it said it was holding talks about the Indian company taking a 51 per cent stake in the group.

The Johannesburg-based company has 68million customers in 21 countries in Africa and the Middle East, with South Africa, Nigeria and Iran its biggest markets.

A move by Vodafone would have required it to sell its existing interests in Africa where it has a 50 per cent stake in Vodacom, the continent’s largest mobile operator.

The other partner is Telkom, part-owned by the South African government.

Vodafone’s plans for Africa have been under scrutiny since November, when Telkom blocked its attempt to take control of Vodacom.