Verizon is reportedly seeking to raise $10 billion in corporate bonds to help fund its $20 billion acquisition of Frontier Communications.

Bloomberg reported this week that Verizon is selling debt in the bond market as part of a five-part bond sale.

Regulators approved Verizon's $20bn acquisition of Frontier earlier this year after Verizon agreed to end its diversity, equity, and inclusion programs (DEI).

Bloomberg reports that Bank of America Corp., Goldman Sachs Group Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Morgan Stanley, and Wells Fargo & Co. are managing the bond sale.

Verizon first announced an agreement to acquire Frontier in September of last year. Under the agreement, Verizon is set to buy Frontier for $38.50 per share in cash.

The deal is a key part of Verizon's fiber drive, with the carrier competing against AT&T and T-Mobile to build out its fiber network.

During the company's Q3 earnings report last month, Verizon reiterated that it expects the Frontier deal to close in the first quarter of next year. The transaction is set to expand Verizon's fiber footprint to 29 million locations.

Frontier only filed for bankruptcy in 2020 with debts of more than $16bn, as the company sought to turn around its fortunes and cut around $10bn of that debt. A year later, the company exited bankruptcy.

Combined, Verizon and Frontier have more than 10 million fiber customers across 31 states and Washington DC.

Frontier had previously acquired Verizon’s rural fixed-line assets for $6.8bn in 2010, covering 14 states, before snapping up operations in California, Florida, and Texas for $10.5bn in 2015.