Vodafone and Verizon near agreement on wireless unit

1st Sep 2013 22:05

Negotiators for Verizon Communications and Vodafone Group have reached a 130bn dollar deal that will see the US giant gain complete control of its up to now joint-controlled wireless unit, Verizon Wireless, The Wall Street Journal [WSJ] reports, echoing other reports published earlier in the day.Under the terms of the proposed agreement Verizon would pay for the stake in roughly equal portions of cash and stock, one of the people consulted said.The transaction is still subject to approval by the board of Verizon, which is expected to meet earlier in the day on Monday, the sources cited said. Vodafone's board was scheduled to meet on Sunday to approve the deal.The transaction may be announced as soon as Monday, after the close of trading, according to the WSJ. Earlier in the day The Sunday Times wrote that the tax bill for the sale of the 45% stake by Vodafone has been pared down from earlier estimates of up to $40bn to only $5bn. That was seen as the main obstacle to any transaction.However, the use of off-shore tax jurisdictions to allow the above could revive the uproar about Vodafone's tax arrangements. Shareholders expect to get about £56bn with Chief Executive Vittorio Colao left with £25bn to spend on acquisitions, The Sunday Times explained. Ironically, for some the question now will be if Vodafone itself will be next on the auction block.AB