October 6, 2023 - Vantage Data Centers has raised $1.35 billion in securitized notes.
The funding is comprised of $1.026bn five and seven-year Class A notes, CA$380m (US$286m) Class A tranche and CA$43m (US$31.35m) Class B notes.
The funding will primarily be used to refinance the existing loans in place for three of Vantage's data centers in Northern Virginia and five data centers in Quebec, Canada. The remaining funds will be used for "general corporate needs."
This is Vantage's largest securitization so far. Deutsche Bank Securities acted as the Sole Structuring Adviser, with Deutsche Bank, Societe Generale, Truist Securities, and Wells Fargo Securities acting as Joint Active Bookrunning Managers.
The funding also includes a Green Bond designation from Morningstar Sustainalytics. This means that the financing can be used for the following categories: Green buildings, energy efficiency, climate change adaptation, renewable energy, pollution prevention and control, sustainable water and wastewater management, research and development. In addition, Vantage's data centers must aim for a PUE of 1.5 or below, based on a tenant utilization of 50 percent or greater.
“This transaction is Vantage’s ninth securitization financing since 2018. It’s also our fourth green financing bringing our total green loan financings to more than $2 billion,” said Sharif Metwalli, Vantage’s chief financial officer.
“This financing provides an even stronger financial position for our North American platform and enables us to continue scaling the business to meet customer demand in an environmentally friendly way. We appreciate the ongoing support and partnership from our lead investor, DigitalBridge, and their confidence in us to grow the business to not only meet our customers’ IT requirements but also to align with our customers’ sustainability goals.”
“Vantage is delivering on its growth strategy, and despite inflation and the challenging capital markets, investors continue to be confident in Vantage’s ability to execute as evidenced by this securitization,” added Jon Mauck, senior managing director at DigitalBridge. “We look forward to further building on this momentum to drive value for our stakeholders, not only in North America but around the world. Vantage is uniquely positioned for long-term growth with a leading digital infrastructure platform designed for the world’s preeminent hyperscalers and cloud providers.”
Last month saw the Australian pension fund AustralianSuper investing $1.6 billion in acquiring a "significant" minority stake in Vantage Data Centers EMEA. The fund will now be a key shareholder alongside DigitalBridge.
Shortly after, Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) provided a $450m loan facility to Vantage, proceeds of which will go to expanding Vantage's build-out across North America.
