VODAFONE, the troubled mobile group, is gearing up for a £2 billion sale of its stake in Swisscom Mobile, the Swiss mobile operator, in its latest effort to win over disgruntled shareholders, The Times has learnt.

The expected exit from Switzerland comes after Vodafone’s £1.4 billion sale yesterday of its 25 per cent stake in Proximus, Belgium’s leading mobile business, to Belgacom, Belgium’s dominant fixed-line operator.

Although Vodafone is not yet in formal negotiations on Swisscom, it is thought that a sale of the stake — which analysts value at about £1.7 billion — could come before the year end. The likely buyer would be Swisscom, the mobile division’s parent company.

The sell-offs mark the latest moves by Arun Sarin, Vodafone’s much-criticised chief executive, to appease investors by realigning the business to cope better with fierce competition.

After acknowledging that the “bigger is better” strategy determinedly pursued by Vodafone under its former head, Sir Christopher Gent, was no longer working, Mr Sarin, who saw nearly 10 per cent of votes at the group’s annual meeting cast against him, pledged to review the group’s global portfolio.

Analysts yesterday welcomed the all-cash sale of Proximus. They said that Vodafone, which will use proceeds of the Belgian sale to trim debt, had extracted a good price for the business.

Analysts in Deutsche Bank told clients the deal underscored how rival operators were willing to ascribe more value to Vodafone’s assets than financial markets do.

However, analysts said that bolder moves would be required. Christian Maher, of Investec, said: “It [the sale of Vodafone’s stake in Proximus] does not solve the group’s fundamental problems.”

Vodafone has faced calls from shareholders to sell its US assets, over which it lacks management control. They say that a sale of its minority stake in Verizon Wireless to its partner, Verizon Communications, could net £25 billion.

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