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Speaking exclusively to Mortgage Adviser, Rob Clifford, chief executive of Mortgageforce, said discussions had taken place with the supermarket chain "several months ago" but no formal process had begun.

Mr Clifford said: "We have had informal discussions with Asda, Sainsbury's and other major retailers but we are certainly not waiting for a decision.

"If Asda was to formally tender - or any retail organisation which has got more than 1m customers - then we would definitely want to tender. We are tendering for a trade union at the moment with more than 2m members and that sort of thing is right up our street."

Rebecca Liburd, a spokesman for Asda, said: "We are considering a move into the mortgage market as we do not think the market is currently working well for many consumers.

"We are in the very early stages of this but our aim would be to provide a one-stop shop for a good deal tying in the mortgage, home insurance, protection and anything else the customer needs."

Bath-based advisers London & Country Mortgages currently offers mortgage advice to Tesco customers.