Asset manager Blue Owl expands into data center space with $1 bln IPI buy.
Blue Owl (OWL.N), opens new tab will buy IPI Partners, which invests in digital infrastructure, for about $1 billion as the asset manager looks to tap into the surging demand for data centers that are powering a fast adoption of generative AI by companies.
Blue Owl said on Monday it would purchase Chicago-based IPI, a joint venture between investment manager ICONIQ Capital and private equity firm Iron Point Partners, from its owners and fund the deal with 80% of equity and 20% in cash.
The deal will add about $10.5 billion in assets to Blue Owl’s kitty and bolster its digital infrastructure business, housed under its real estate platform. Blue Owl manages more than $192 billion in assets.
Piper Sandler analysts said:
(It is) an important acquisition that gives OWL a seat at the table for the fast-growing digital infrastructure economy with a strong partner.
Founded in 2016, IPI has a portfolio of 82 data centers comprising more than 2.2 gigawatts of leased capacity globally.
Doug Ostrover and Marc Lipschultz, Blue Owl’s Co-CEOs, said:
There is a massive market opportunity to finance data centers, matched by an increasing investor appetite for additional strategies investing behind cloud and AI-driven secular tailwinds.
The IPI deal marks the fourth acquisition for Blue Owl this year, as the asset manager looks to bolster its business across insurance, private credit and real estate.
It has acquired investment manager Kuvare Asset Management, real estate lender Prima Capital Advisors and credit manager Atalaya Capital Management in 2024.
Blue Owl shares, which have risen 40% this year, gained 1.4%.
The latest deal, expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2024 or first quarter of 2025, is likely to modestly boost Blue Owl’s earnings in 2026.
IPI’s managing partner Matt A’Hearn will become head of Blue Owl’s digital infrastructure strategy.
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Asset manager Blue Owl expands into data center space with $1 bln IPI buy. source