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Blackstone, the American private equity firm, announced on Wednesday its agreement to purchase AirTrunk, a data center operator based in Sydney. This acquisition aligns with the firm’s strategy to invest in AI-related assets within the Asia-Pacific region.
This deal marks the largest leveraged buyout of the year to date, occurring as private equity dealmaking begins to rebound after a significant increase in financing costs during 2022 and 2023. These rising costs had previously made it challenging to finance substantial acquisitions, as reported by Yahoo.
Working alongside the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments), Blackstone is acquiring AirTrunk from Macquarie Asset Management (MAM) and the Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP).
In a statement made on Wednesday, CPP Investments noted that upon completion of the transaction, it will hold a 12 percent stake in AirTrunk.
As foreign entities are involved in the acquisition, the Australian Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) will need to approve the deal. With a valuation of $16.1 billion, this acquisition is considered the largest buyout in Australia for the year and among the most significant in recent history.
Blackstone President Jon Gray remarked that this acquisition represents the company’s “largest investment in the Asia Pacific region,” highlighting that “AirTrunk is a critical move as Blackstone strives to become the leading digital infrastructure investor globally across various sectors, including data centers, power, and associated services.”
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