Verizon-Vodafone Deal Would Be a Big Payday for Deal Makers Though deal makers often complain about the slow pace of business in the summer, it appears that one of the biggest takeovers in years is near. Should Verizon Communications successfully buy out Vodafone's 45 percent stake in Verizon Wireless - analysts suggest that the transaction would be valued at more than $125 billion - it would consummate one of the largest takeovers on record. At that level, it would trail only Vodafone's $202.8 billion acquisition of Mannesmann and the $181.6 million union of AOL and Time Warner, according to data from Thomson Reuters. And it would easily displace AT&T's $89.4 billion purchase of BellSouth, Pfizer's $88.8 billion takeover of Warner-Lambert and Exxon's $85.1 billion deal for Mobil. Such a big deal could mean huge fees for the bankers and lawyers who have labored to make one of the decade's most anticipated deals finally materialize. Beyond the advisory fees, banks would could also reap fees from the tens of billions of dollars in loans that would support Verizon's purchase. Virtually every big bank on Wall Street has clamored to land a role in the deal, since having credit in the deal would instantly bolster a bank's standing in the deal-maker rankings. Here's where the league tables stood as of Thursday, according to Thomson Reuters: Goldman Sachs, with 238 deals valued at $342 billion Bank of America Merrill Lynch, 136 deals, $281.5 billion JPMorgan Chase, 174 deals, $271.5 billion Morgan Stanley, 192 deals, $248.2 billion Deutsche Bank, 125 deals, $180 billion Citigroup, 146 deals, $155.5 billion Credit Suisse, 139 deals, $145.3 billion Barclays, 117 deals, $140.9 billion Lazard, 158 deals, $137.1 billion UBS, 112 deals, $105.1 billion