SoftBank Group to Acquire DigitalBridge Group
SoftBank Group announced its plan to acquire digital infrastructure investor DigitalBridge Group in a $4 billion deal, as the Japanese investment firm seeks to broaden its AI-centric portfolio.
The acquisition would expand SoftBank's investment in digital infrastructure as the Japanese company aligns its portfolio to prioritize artificial intelligence.
The $16 per share offer indicates a 15 percent rise from DigitalBridge's closing price on Friday and values the company at $2.92 billion, with the deal expected to close in the second half of next year.
Billionaire SoftBank founder, Masayoshi Son, aims to capitalize on the increasing need for computing power essential for artificial intelligence uses.
The acquisition "is certainly an important move in tackling essential infrastructure issues," remarked Jacob Yahiayan, CEO of DigitalBridge investor Urban Logistic Advisory Services, but stressed that SoftBank remains far from managing 10 percent of the global hardware- and software-as-a-service sector.
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DigitalBridge invests in digital infrastructure sectors such as data centers, cellular towers, fiber networks, small-cell systems, and edge infrastructure, showcasing a portfolio that includes companies like Vantage Data Centers, Zayo, Switch, and AtlasEdge.
Founded in 1991 as Colony Capital with an emphasis on real estate, the company evolved under CEO Marc Ganzi to concentrate on digital infrastructure and was renamed DigitalBridge in 2021 after shedding most of its traditional property assets.
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The firms announced that Ganzi will continue to head DigitalBridge as a separately managed platform.
As of September 30, DigitalBridge managed around $108 billion in assets, making it one of the largest dedicated investors in the digital ecosystem.
The company, teaming up with OpenAI, Oracle, and the Abu Dhabi investment firm MGX, is investing billions into the Stargate initiative, an extensive computing and infrastructure project aimed at promoting advanced AI development.
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In September, OpenAI, Oracle, and SoftBank revealed plans to create five new computing centers in Texas, New Mexico, and Ohio, expected to provide a combined power capacity of about seven gigawatts upon becoming operational.