AirTrunk’s $23.5b AI pay day

Original article by Paul Smith, Anthony Macdonald
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 20 : 4-Sep-24

US-based asset manager Blackstone has secured a deal to buy Australian data centre company AirTrunk. The deal values AirTrunk at about $23.5bn, eclipsing the previous record price of $US15bn ($22bn) for a data centre company. Sources have indicated that AirTrunk founder Robin Khuda will sell half of his 10 per cent stake to Blackstone for about $500m, while he will remain CEO of the company. Macquarie Group’s infrastructure arm and Canada-based PSP Investments will in turn sell their entire stakes in AirTrunk to Blackstone. AirTrunk owns 11 data centres in Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Malaysia.

CORPORATES
AIRTRUNK, THE BLACKSTONE GROUP LP, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, PSP INVESTMENTS

Your data at risk in takeovers

Original article by Glenda Korporaal
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 21-Aug-19

Foreign Investment Review Board chairman David Irvine has stressed the need to closely scrutinise foreign bids for companies that own data centres or hold Australians’ personal data. Irvine has used an Australia China Business Council speech to argue that data must be afforded the same level of protection as critical infrastructure such as ports, water supply and the power sector. He added that the FIRB’s tougher stance on the issue of data security has not attracted much concern among foreign investors.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. FOREIGN INVESTMENT REVIEW BOARD, AUSTRALIA CHINA BUSINESS COUNCIL, AUSTRALIAN SECURITY INTELLIGENCE ORGANISATION, AUSTRALIAN SECRET INTELLIGENCE SERVICE, AUSTRALIA. CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE SECTOR, SIRTEX MEDICAL LIMITED, NATURE’S CARE, LIFE-SPACE GROUP, HEALIUS LIMITED – ASX HLS, JANGHO GROUP, AUSTRALIAN DEFENCE FORCE, KPMG AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY, AUSTRALIAN STRATEGIC POLICY INSTITUTE LIMITED