Vodafone’s plans to further its expansion in Africa with the acquisition of a controlling stake in one of the continent’s biggest mobile operators stumbled on Friday when the local regulator withdrew its support for the deal at the last minute.
South Africa’s telecoms watchdog reversed an earlier decision to wave through the UK mobile giant’s $2.5bn purchase of an additional 15 per cent stake in Vodacom, its 50-50 joint venture with state-controlled Telkom, following a court action to block the deal by the country’s trade union federation.
