---
title: "Verizon → Verizon Wireless (45% stake held by Vodafone)"
url: "https://mahouse.world/ma-deals/verizon-buy-verizon-wireless-45-stake-held-by-vodafone-2013"
type: "M&A deal"
year: "2013"
---

# Verizon → Verizon Wireless (45% stake held by Vodafone)

Not a takeover in the classical sense — a joint-venture buyout, ending a 13-year partnership by handing Vodafone the largest single return of capital in corporate history.

Verizon bought out Vodafone's 45% interest with $58.9bn of cash, $60.2bn of shares and further loan notes and assets.

- **Acquirer:** Verizon (United States)
- **Target:** Verizon Wireless (45% stake held by Vodafone) (United Kingdom)
- **Value:** $130B
- **Announced:** September 2013
- **Completed:** February 2014
- **Sector:** Telecom
- **Deal type:** acquisition

## Why it mattered

Verizon Wireless was the most profitable mobile carrier in the United States. Verizon Communications owned 55%; Vodafone the other 45%, with no operating control. Verizon wanted full consolidation on its own P&L. Vodafone wanted out of a JV in which it had been effectively a passive holder for years and needed to redeploy capital into its own European business.

## The story

Announced 2 September 2013, closed 21 February 2014. The consideration mix was $58.9bn in cash, $60.2bn in Verizon common stock, $5bn in Verizon notes issued to Vodafone, plus about $6bn in other assets and Vodafone's Verizon-issued preferred and Omnitel stake. Verizon raised $49bn of investment-grade debt in a single day in September 2013 to finance the cash leg — at the time the largest corporate bond offering ever.

## What it left behind

Vodafone returned around $84bn to its shareholders — the largest capital return by a public company at the time. Verizon got full operating control of its wireless business precisely as smartphone data was becoming the industry's profit engine, and dominated US wireless for the following decade.

## At a glance

- **Structure:** JV buyout, cash + stock (Vodafone's 45% stake in JV)
- **Cash component:** $58.9B
- **Verizon stock component:** $60.2B
- **Verizon debt raise:** $49B (Largest single-day corporate bond deal at the time)
- **Announced:** 2 Sep 2013
- **Completed:** 21 Feb 2014
- **Vodafone capital return:** ~$84B
- **Advisors:** Guggenheim, JPM, Morgan Stanley (Verizon); Goldman, UBS (Vodafone)