Equinix Inc. has acquired the India operations of GPX Global Systems Inc. in an all-cash transaction of a $161 million deal. This acquisition is expected to close in the first quarter of 2021, but it’s subject to regulatory approval and other customary closing conditions.
The deal provides the company with the ability to further expand throughout the country. The global interconnection and data company – Platform Equinix has set its foot in India with the addition of two interconnected data services.
Charles Meyers, President and CEO Equinix, in an official statement said extending Platform Equinix to India has long been a strategic objective for the company. He told the GPX transaction will allow Equinix to capitalize on this market opportunity and meet the needs of their customers as they seek to expand their digital business. “The acquisition of GPX’s business in India meets we are able to make a giant leap forward in terms of growing our ecosystem in India and gives us a solid foundation for rapid growth and expansion on the country,” Meyers said.
Platform Equinix acknowledges that India represents the second-largest internet user base in the world. Its statement pointed out that consumption is expected to grow with the continued advancement of the internet infrastructure, smartphone ownership and the penetration of 4G and 5G. “This acquisition follows the recent announcement of our planned expansion in Canada and is a testament to our continued focus on expanding our global reach as companies continue to view interconnection at the digital edge as a business imperative.”
Rachit Mohan, India head Data Center JLL, was quoted by ET saying that the data centre industry has quickly become a favoured asset class which attracts investments across the whole spectrum of private equity investors, infrastructure funds, real estate funds along with strategic players looking for consolidation opportunities. He said India is riding this wave in the forefront and is expected to attract significant investments in time to come.
Platform Equinix has over 210 data centres across 56 metros and 26 countries across the world. It provides data centre and interconnection services for over 9,000 business.
