Vertical Bridge closes US$3.3 billion tower transaction deal with Verizon

The communications infrastructure and locations operator is getting a sizable portfolio of tower assets from Verizon. The deal includes obtaining the exclusive rights to lease, operate, and manage wireless communications towers across all 50 states from subsidiaries of Verizon.

When first announced in September 2024, the details of the deal included more than 6,000 towers across the country including Washington D.C. and the transaction was said to be structured as “a prepaid lease with upfront proceeds of approximately US$2.8 billion in cash.”

With the deal closing, Verizon has entered into a 10-year agreement to lease back capacity on the towers from Vertical Bridge with the option to extend the lease term up to 50 years. The deal was also drawn to give Verizon access to certain additional space on the towers for its future use.

This means that Verizon can make some additional cash selling off towers while not fully parting with the assets.

When the agreement got first brokered Verizon said that in addition to its existing build-to-suit joint venture with Vertical Bridge (brokered 18 months prior), the new deal would support the telco’s efforts to cut down tower-related costs and deliver better vendor diversity in a concentrated market.

For Vertical Bridge the deal means the towerco now boasts a portfolio of more than 500,000 sites, including over 17,000 owned and master-leased towers.

“The close of this transaction marks a transformative milestone for Vertical Bridge, solidifying us as the partner of choice in the U.S. communications infrastructure industry. These under-tenanted towers, many in hard-to-site locations, uniquely position us to expand vertical real estate solutions to our customers,” said Vertical Bridge CEO, Ron Bizick, on the news of the completion. “With the addition of these towers, Vertical Bridge looks forward to growing our partnership with all our tenants.”