Bain’s Bridge Data Centres seeks to upsize loan to US$6.6 billion
This will be one of the largest deals for the sector in Asia
[HONG KONG] Bain Capital-owned Bridge Data Centres is in talks with banks to more than double the size of an existing loan to about US$6.6 billion, people familiar with the matter said, in what would be one of the largest deals for the sector in Asia.
The move is an extension of a previous effort to increase the size to at least US$5 billion from an original US$2.8 billion that it obtained last year for its operations in Malaysia.
The expanded deal could be launched into the market as early as November, according to the people, who asked not to be identified discussion private matters.
At the same time, plans for a loan of up to US$6 billion for a Thailand-based data centre have stalled, the people said, around the time the South-east Asian nation decided last month to suspend the construction of 49 data centres amid concerns over energy usage.
A spokesperson for Bridge said “as a matter of policy, we do not comment on unverified information or market speculation”.
Data centre operators have been rushing to take on additional debt as they seek to expand amid growing demand spurred by the AI boom. Moody’s Ratings expects at least US$3 trillion to flow into data centre-related investments over the next five years, with much of the spending financed through debt.
Still, signs are emerging that global investors are starting to push back when they perceive valuations to be frothy. Banks are increasingly mindful of their exposure to the sector as they bump-up against lending limits.
The most salient recent example of investor hesitation came just last week when Firmus Grid pulled an attempt at one of Australia’s biggest-ever initial public offerings after running into difficulties convincing some potential investors of its steep increase in market value.
Wall Street has grown increasingly anxious about AI and its potential to impact other businesses, a fear that spurred investors to dump a range of stocks from Expedia to Salesforce earlier this year.
BDC is a unit of Wintrix, formerly known as Chindata Group, the Chinese data centre operator that Bain Capital took private in 2023 in a deal worth about US$3.2 billion. The firm currently has facilities in Malaysia, Thailand, and India, according to its company website. BLOOMBERG
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