LONDON — Verizon Communications was poised yesterday to finally take full control of its United States wireless business with a $130 billion deal that would buy out Vodafone and bring an end to a decade-long corporate standoff.
Reuters
The British firm said late on Sunday it was in advanced talks with Verizon to sell its 45% stake in the Verizon Wireless joint venture for cash and common shares in what would be the world’s third-largest deal of all time.
People familiar with the situation told Reuters they expected a full announcement to come after the London stock market closure yesterday and after the board of Verizon meets earlier to vote on the proposed transaction.
The move to sell the jewel in Vodafone’s crown closes a heady expansionist chapter for one of Britain’s most famous companies, which grew rapidly over the last 20 years through a spate of aggressive deals to operate in more than 30 countries across Europe, Africa and India.
The new Vodafone will be smaller, less profitable and more reliant on its core, mature European assets, but it is expected to use the huge windfall to rebuild via smaller acquisitions and higher network investments.
Speculation had already begun that Vodafone could itself become a bid target, and news of the pending deal sent its shares up 4% to a more than 12-year high in early London trade yesterday.
Under the terms of the proposed agreement, Vodafone would get $60 billion in cash, $60 billion in Verizon stock, and an additional $10 billion from smaller transactions that will take the total deal value to $130 billion, two of the people familiar with the matter said on Saturday.
- Chamisa under fire over US$120K donation
- Mavhunga puts DeMbare into Chibuku quarterfinals
- Pension funds bet on Cabora Bassa oilfields
- Councils defy govt fire tender directive
Keep Reading
To fund the cash portion of the deal, Verizon has lined up as much as $65 billion in financing from four banks: JPMorgan Chase & Co, Morgan Stanley, Barclays Plc and Bank of America Merrill Lynch, they said. The banks have committed to the financing which is expected be split evenly among the four, two people said.
If the deal is concluded, it will end one of the longest-running corporate standoffs, which has at times seen both partners seek to buy out the other in times of weakness. For Verizon, it means that it no longer has to share the billions in cash generated by Verizon Wireless.
On the Vodafone side, chief executive Vittorio Colao will get a war chest of cash to reward shareholders and potentially carry out acquisitions to strengthen the group’s European and emerging market operations.
Vodafone shares have risen 13% since news of the deal emerged on Thursday.
