Report: Verizon may acquire Alltel
A wireless merger of such gigantic proportion could challenge AT&T, according to a Wall Street Journal report.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Verizon Wireless is in talks to purchase rival Alltel Corp., according to a report Wednesday, in a deal that could create the largest mobile carrier in the United States.
According to sources cited by The Wall Street Journal, the deal could be worth $27 billion. The delicate negotiations involve multiple financiers, including private equity firm TPG Capital and the group of banks which supported Alltel's $27.5 billion buyout last year.
Goldman Sachs (GS, Fortune 500), Citigroup (C, Fortune 500), Barclays PLC (BCS) and Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC (RBS) still hold more than $24 billion in loans and bonds over Alltel.
The Department of Justice and the Federal Communications Commission would need to approve any merger, but combining Alltel - which has a subscriber base of about 13.2 million people in the South and Midwest - with Verizon Wireless (VZ, Fortune 500) would create a 80-million-subscriber wireless telecom giant to challenge the dominance of AT&T, the Journal wrote.
AT&T (ATT) reported 71.4 million subscribers last quarter. 
