Vodafone hailed as most valuable brand in Britain

VODAFONE has been named the UK's most valuable brand, with the mobile phone giant also ranking seventh in the world.

The group leapfrogged HSBC to take top spot in the UK league, with the firm among 27 British companies listed in this year's survey of the world's 500 most valuable brands by consultancy Brand Finance.

Barclays, which on Tuesday announced record annual profits of 11.6 billion, climbed the ranking to make the top 50 this year, securing 44th place, up from 77 in 2009.

Tesco also gained some ground in the Global 500, moving up from 20th place to 16th.

HSBC was relegated into eighth place by Vodafone, despite a rise in its brand value – calculated using a benchmark system that looks at strength, risk and future potential of a brand as well as the firm's financial strength.

Meanwhile, Abbey's Spanish parent Santander soared up the rankings into 12th position, from 41 last year, reflecting the group's performance during the credit crisis and its recent UK acquisitions.

The survey reveals that US supermarket behemoth Wal-Mart is the world's most valuable brand for the second year running, increasing its brand value by 2 per cent to $41.4bn (26.3bn).