Shinhan backs AMP Capital’s $763 mn US data center acquisition

Shinhan Investment Corp. has provided 194.1 billion won ($162 million) in financing for AMP Capital’s 911 billion-won ($763 million) acquisition of the US data center and cloud computing services firm Expedient, in an investment expected to generate a double-digit return.

The financing was split into 76.1 billion won in common shares and 118 billion won senior debt, said a source with knowledge of the matter on Feb. 3, after it was first reported by the Maeil Business Newspaper.

AMP Capital bought Expedient from Landmark Media Enterprises LLC in October 2019 for an undisclosed sum. At the time, the asset manager said that the investment was made on behalf of investors in its global infrastructure equity strategy.

The acquisition happened after AMP Capital raised a fifth of its new $6.2 billion fund, AMP Capital Infrastructure Debt Fund IV, from South Korea in 2019.

Shinhan expects to earn an 15% annual return from the investment, which is part of its efforts to diversify into higher-yielding segments beyond traditional infrastructure assets such as roads, harbors and energy facilities.

It also took on the role of a co-underwriter for the Expedient acquisition financing to sell down the senior debt portion of the funding package to Korean investors. Deutsche Bank’s New York office is the other underwriter.

Expedient said in October 2019 that it would use AMP Capital’s investment to grow and expand its data center and enterprise cloud platforms into the west of the country beyond the northeast and central US.

It operates 11 data centers in the US.

By Hyun-il Lee

hiuneal@hankyung.com

(Photo: Getty Images Bank)