Australian Pension Fund Makes Major Investment in European Data Centre Business
Australia’s largest pension fund, AustralianSuper, is investing €1.5bn in Vantage Data Centers, one of the largest data centre businesses in Europe. This marks the fund’s first foray into data centres and is part of a broader trend of institutional investors investing in digital infrastructure. Data centres have become favored by investors due to the increasing data demands of large technology companies.
Vantage Data Centers is valued at $11bn and is owned by DigitalBridge, a US private equity firm. The investment will focus on Vantage’s Europe, Middle East, and Africa businesses. AustralianSuper plans to invest additional capital in Vantage in the future and also target properties owned by other private capital groups.
The shift towards data centres is seen in the transformation of DigitalBridge, previously known as Colony Capital, a real estate investment group. Colony acquired data centre investor Digital Bridge Holdings and sold its real estate assets to fund investments in data centres. Vantage Emea, the European arm of Vantage Data Centers, has locations in major European cities including London, Berlin, and Frankfurt.
The investment from AustralianSuper is a reflection of Australian pension funds looking overseas and towards private assets for growth. The industry is the world’s fifth-largest pension system and has started to invest directly in companies and assets. Mobile towers, telecoms networks, and data centres have become attractive targets for these funds.
This investment highlights the growing importance of data centres in the digital economy and the long-term growth potential of the sector. The increasing demand for cloud computing and artificial intelligence is driving the need for more data centres, making them a lucrative investment opportunity for institutional investors.
What do you think about AustralianSuper’s investment in Vantage Data Centers? Are data centres the future of digital infrastructure? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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