Ardian acquires leading data center platform Verne Global from Digital 9

• Ardian’s investment will support Verne Global’s management team to deliver an ambitious and sustainable expansion plan across the Nordics
• Ardian will commit significant capital to grow the Verne Global platform while allowing its management team to leverage Ardian’s strong renewables know-how
• Ardian demonstrated again its strong expertise in digital infrastructure with investments across the value chain

Ardian, a world leading private investment house, has signed a binding agreement to acquire 100% of Verne Global, a leading data center platform diversified across the UK and Nordics, from Digital 9 Infrastructure plc (D9). 

This acquisition builds on Ardian’s deep expertise in investing and managing assets across the digital infrastructure value chain. Ardian will support the company’s strong management team, led by CEO Dominic Ward, to deliver an ambitious expansion plan in the Nordics, one of the fastest growing regions for data centers supported by low-carbon energy and international connectivity. 

Founded in 2012, Verne Global’s Northern European data center platform has experienced significant growth and now includes five data center campuses in London, Iceland and Finland. It provides highly specialised data center services for organisations running high-performance computing (HPC) workloads, notably AI, machine learning and Large Language Models (LLM).

Sustainability is at the heart of the company’s mission to help customers cost-effectively scale their digital infrastructure while reducing their carbon footprint. The majority of its data centers are powered by renewable energy.

Closing of the transaction is subject to the receipt of merger control and foreign direct investment clearance which is expected by the end of Q1 2024.

“Verne Global has pioneered a sustainable approach to data centre management, using renewable energy and re-purposing existing sites to minimise its environmental impact. Ardian’s investment will support the strong management team at Verne Global to deliver an ambitious plan for its next stage of growth. With Ardian’s support, Verne is well positioned to capitalise on global digitalisation trends such as the accelerating use of AI and machine learning.” Gonzague Boutry, William Briggs & Pauline Thomson, Infrastructure team, Ardian    

“Verne Global continues Ardian’s strategy of investing in a balanced portfolio of infrastructure with scope for growth and attractive returns. This transaction further illustrates the capability of the Infrastructure team at Ardian to invest in large digital infrastructure assets in Europe. We look forward to working with the management team to deliver on the significant potential of the Verne Global platform.” Juan Angoitia Grijalba & Benoît Gaillochet, Co-Heads of Infrastructure Europe, Ardian

“We are absolutely delighted to become part of the Ardian platform, which has a team with deep expertise in digital infrastructure that will help accelerate our ambitious expansion plans across the Nordics. Verne aims to deliver sustainable data center solutions that enable organisations to cost-effectively scale their digital infrastructure while reducing their environmental impact. We are hugely excited to be working with Ardian and believe that we have the perfect partner to help power our future. “ Dominic Ward, CEO, Verne Global

ABOUT ARDIAN

Ardian is a world-leading private investment house, managing or advising $156bn of assets on behalf of more than 1,470 clients globally. Our broad expertise, spanning Private Equity, Real Assets and Credit, enables us to offer a wide range of investment opportunities and respond flexibly to our clients’ differing needs. Through Ardian Customized Solutions we create bespoke portfolios that allow institutional clients to specify the precise mix of assets they require and to gain access to funds managed by leading third-party sponsors. Private Wealth Solutions offers dedicated services and access solutions for private banks, family offices and private institutional investors worldwide. Ardian’s main shareholding group is its employees and we place great emphasis on developing its people and fostering a collaborative culture based on collective intelligence. Our 1,050+ employees, spread across 19 offices in Europe, the Americas, Asia and Middle East are strongly committed to the principles of Responsible Investment and are determined to make finance a force for good in society. Our goal is to deliver excellent investment performance combined with high ethical standards and social responsibility.
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