Verizon emerges as U.S. cellphone giant
A proposed U.S. merger between Verizon Wireless and recently privatized rival Alltel Corp. further highlights the unpopularity of leveraged buyouts in a tight credit market yet another strike against the pending $52 billion takeover of Canadian phone giant BCE Inc.
Verizon, with some 67 million subscribers, confirmed yesterday it will pay $28 billion (U.S.) for rural mobile phone service provider Alltel, with 13 million subscribers, in a deal that includes the assumption of $22.2 billion worth of debt.
Most of that was incurred when Alltel was taken private by TPG Capital and a unit of Goldman Sachs Partners in a leveraged buyout late last year.
The combined entity would become the biggest wireless provider in the United States with more than 80 million customers, leapfrogging Verizon ahead of the current leader AT&T Inc., with about 71 million.
From The Toronto Star, June 6, 2008
Jun 06, 2008 04:30 AM
Chris Sorensen
Business Reporter
For full story, see....
http://www.thestar.com/Business/article/438244
A proposed U.S. merger between Verizon Wireless and recently privatized rival Alltel Corp. further highlights the unpopularity of leveraged buyouts in a tight credit market yet another strike against the pending $52 billion takeover of Canadian phone giant BCE Inc.
Verizon, with some 67 million subscribers, confirmed yesterday it will pay $28 billion (U.S.) for rural mobile phone service provider Alltel, with 13 million subscribers, in a deal that includes the assumption of $22.2 billion worth of debt.
Most of that was incurred when Alltel was taken private by TPG Capital and a unit of Goldman Sachs Partners in a leveraged buyout late last year.
The combined entity would become the biggest wireless provider in the United States with more than 80 million customers, leapfrogging Verizon ahead of the current leader AT&T Inc., with about 71 million.
From The Toronto Star, June 6, 2008
Jun 06, 2008 04:30 AM
Chris Sorensen
Business Reporter
For full story, see....
http://www.thestar.com/Business/article/438244
