Alternative asset managers Hillhouse Capital, Boyu Capital and CDH Investments are in advanced talks to invest in GDS’s (9698) data center business outside China, according to people familiar with the situation, sending the company’s shares up as much as 24 percent in Hong Kong yesterday.
An agreement on a total investment of US$500 million (HK$3.9 billion) to US$600 million may be reached as soon as the coming weeks, though no final decisions have been made, the people said. Other investors could also be involved in a deal, they said.
GDS’s shares jumped the most since November 2022 following the report. They closed 18.2 percent higher.
Shanghai-based GDS is expanding in Southeast Asia and has been contemplating selling a minority stake, Bloomberg reported in February last year.
Private equity firms that traditionally focused on China are increasingly shifting their attention to other regions like Southeast Asia.
Last month, Hillhouse bought Singapore-based business services provider InCorp Global from private equity firm TA Associates for an undisclosed amount.
Real estate asset manager ESR (1821) expects to gain US$50 million from its sale of ARA Private Funds business in Australia, Singapore, South Korea and the US.
Hong Kong United Times丨香港聯合時報丨HKUT 