(Reuters) – Verizon Communications Inc <VZ.N> said on Monday it would buy wireless services provider Tracfone, a unit of Mexican telecom America Movil <AMXL.MX>, in a $6.25 billion cash and stock deal.
Tracfone, which serves about 21 million subscribers through more than 90,000 retail locations across United States, said over 13 million of its subscribers rely on Verizon’s network under an existing agreement.
The U.S. wireless industry is concentrated in the hands of three mobile carriers due to several merger deals in recent years, T-Mobile <TMUS.O> that in April completed its $23 billion merger with Sprint Corp to solidify its position in the United States, Verizon and AT&T Inc <T.N>.
Shares of Verizon, the largest U.S. wireless carrier by subscribers, were up more than 1% in premarket trading.
The deal would include $3.125 billion in cash and $3.125 billion in Verizon stock.
Credit Suisse is acting as financial adviser to Verizon on the deal that is expected to close in the second half of 2021.
(Reporting by Ayanti Bera in Bengaluru; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi)
The post Verizon to buy wireless services provider Tracfone in $6.25 billion deal appeared first on Morningology.
