Vodafone in €98bn buyout of Verizon

The boards of Verizon Communications and Vodafone were expected to vote this weekend on a $130 billion (€98bn) deal, funded by about $65bn (€49bn) of debt, to give the US telecom giant complete ownership of Verizon Wireless.

A deal, which the sources said could be announced as soon as today, would cap Verizon’s decade-long effort to win full control of the number one US wireless provider.

At $130bn, it would be the third-largest corporate acquisition of all time and mark Vodafone’s exit from the large but mature US market. Vodafone owns 45% of the Verizon Wireless joint venture that was formed in 2000.