Deal would add six data centers and 143,000 sq. ft. to TierPoint footprint
ST. LOUIS, MO (October 23, 2014) – TierPoint today announced it has reached an agreement with an affiliate of ABRY Partners to acquire Xand, a leading, privately held provider of colocation, cloud, disaster recovery and managed services with six data centers located in New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. Terms of the sale were not disclosed.
The acquisition of Xand solidifies TierPoint’s position as one of the leading providers of colocation and cloud services in the United States. The combined company will operate 13 highly-redundant, Tier III plus data centers in 10 very attractive markets with almost 300,000 square feet of raised floor, serving approximately 3,700 customers. In addition, this acquisition positions TierPoint to significantly expand data center capacity in the future by an additional 150,000 square feet of raised floor to support the long-term demands of its customers. The consolidated company will also share a common cloud infrastructure supported by industry-leading partners such as Cisco, NetApp, and Fortinet. The transaction is expected to be finalized in November.
“Cequel III is making a significant investment in TierPoint in support of this transaction and we are excited to bring two market leading data center operators together,” said Jerry Kent, Chairman of TierPoint. “This transaction will enhance our management team and solidify our ability to provide pre-eminent customer service, all supported locally by an employee team that is second to none.”
The acquisition is being funded through a combination of incremental equity from TierPoint’s existing investors as well as a new investor, Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan (Teachers’), Canada’s largest single-profession pension plan with more than $140 billion in net assets. Its investment was led by Teachers’ Private Capital, which manages a global private equity portfolio valued at approximately $14 billion. TierPoint’s current investment group includes Cequel III management led by Chairman Jerry Kent, RedBird Capital Partners, The Stephens Group, Jordan/Zalaznick Advisers, Inc., and Thompson Street Capital Partners.
“We are very excited about the Xand acquisition,” said Paul Estes, TierPoint CEO. “Our investors, including our new investor, Teachers’, have shown confidence in and a deep commitment to TierPoint. By investing in our growth strategy, they have helped position us for success now and for the foreseeable future.”
RBC Capital Markets and Credit Suisse will be providing debt financing for the transaction. Paul Hastings acted as legal advisor to TierPoint. DH Capital acted as exclusive financial advisor to ABRY and Xand, while Kirkland & Ellis served as their legal advisor.
About TierPoint
TierPoint is a leading provider of cloud, colocation and managed services designed to help organizations improve business performance and manage risk. With corporate headquarters in St. Louis, Mo., TierPoint operates 141,000 square feet of raised-floor data center space across multiple state-of-the-art facilities located in Baltimore, Dallas, Oklahoma City, Philadelphia, Seattle, Spokane and Tulsa.
About Xand
Founded in 1999, Xand is the Northeast’s premier provider of highly resilient data center, cloud, and managed services. With data centers in New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, and Massachusetts, Xand offers colocation, cloud, enterprise hosting, managed services, business continuity, disaster recovery and managed networking throughout the region via best-in-class facilities, engineering expertise, and commitment to customer service excellence.
Contact
Patrick Baczenas, 314-315-9361, Patrick.Baczenas@tierpoint.com