BlackRock, IFM close in on $25 billion Stack data center deal, Bloomberg News reports

Sept 24 — A consortium backed by BlackRock and IFM Investors is in exclusive ​talks to buy Stack Infrastructure's Asia Pacific data center portfolio for up to $25 billion, Bloomberg News reported on ‌Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Global investors have been pouring money into ⁠Asia's booming data center sector, ​driven by rising demand for ⁠cloud computing, AI and digital services.

The investor group, which ‌includes the BlackRock-backed Artificial ‌Intelligence Infrastructure Partnership (AIP) and IFM, is preparing to conduct ⁠due diligence on the assets ⁠and hopes to reach an agreement soon with Stack's owner, Blue Owl Capital, the report said.

Bloomberg reported in May that Stack was considering its options, including a sale of its Asia operations in a deal valued at more ‌than $30 billion, and in June that IFM ​and AIP were among potential bidders.

Denver-based Stack operates data centers across key Asia-Pacific markets including Tokyo, Osaka, Sydney and Melbourne, according to its website.

Deliberations are ongoing, and talks could be prolonged or fail to result in a deal, the report added.

Reuters could not immediately verify the report. BlackRock, ​IFM Investors, Stack Infrastructure and Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure Partnership did not ‌immediately respond to ‌a ⁠request for comment.

AIP, launched in late 2024 with plans to initially invest more than $30 billion in AI-related projects, is among the world's largest investment vehicles focused on data centers and energy facilities needed to power ‌AI applications. Nvidia, xAI, ​Microsoft, and investment firm MGX ‌are also investors in ⁠the partnership.

(Reporting ​by Rhea Rose Abraham in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu and ​Rashmi Aich)

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