Verizon sniffing around Vodafone's US stake again Verizon is putting together a $100bn bid for Vodafone's stake in its wireless business, and is ready to take the offer public if a boardroom deal can't be agreed. Half that hundred billion will come in Verizon shares, the rest in borrowed cash, Reuters tells us in its exclusive coverage. But however the money comes it will hit …
The Inland Revenue was unable to make a case that Vodaphone owed them £6 billion, because they DIDN'T HAVE A CASE. (Thanks to the politicians of the last X decades).
That is not Vodaphone's fault.
You sound like Margaret Hodge who thinks that the State is owed tax by corporations (or individuals) who have a "moral" obligation to pay tax that there is no legal requirement for them to do so.
(Forgive me using a politician and the word moral in the same sentence).
Buying T-Mobile USA may be a good idea as it would allow Vodafone GSM customers elsewhere in the world to roam onto a Vodafone owned network in the US which isn't currently possible with Verizon wireless being CDMA based. However note the change of control clause in the MetroPCS story earlier this week:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/04/24/metropcs_aprrove_improved_tmobile_merger/
The Germans can't sell out for 18 months, although where there is a boardroom will there is a sneaky way around it, providing we have better lawyers than you do.
"The German firm has also promised not to sell its stake for at least another 18 months."
There was talk several years ago of Vodafone selling its 45% stake in Verizon wireless and buying what was AT&T Wireless (probably with that same roaming rationale) but the markets voted a big NO on Voda's share price at that idea.
With some investors in this company (not because I'm involved, just because I've been chatting to them).
And none of us can work out where the tax bill would come from. Wouldn't be UK tax, under SSE.
And we sorta assume that the Verizon stake is held through Cayman or somewhere, meaning no US tax. So where is the bill to come from?
Don't make me laugh. Vodafone pay their tax bill? What a load of tosh.
Our second largest communications company avoids far more tax than the banks ever do, yet no-one seems to care. It's about time the media got over their obsession with bankers and Starbucks and started looking at the real UK-based tax avoiders.
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