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DigitalBridge

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DigitalBridge Group, Inc.
FormerlyColony Capital (1991–2021)
Company typePublic
IndustryInvestment
Digital infrastructure
Founded1991; 33 years ago (1991)
FounderTom Barrack
HeadquartersBoca Raton, Florida, U.S.
Key people
ProductsTowers, Data centers, Small cells, Fiber, Edge infrastructure, Investment management, Digital operating
AUM$84 billion (January 2024)
Websitedigitalbridge.com

DigitalBridge Group, Inc. is a global digital infrastructure investment firm. The company owns, invests in and operates businesses such as cell towers, data centers, fiber, small cells, and edge infrastructure. Headquartered in Boca Raton, DigitalBridge has key offices in Los Angeles, New York, London, and Singapore.

In 2010, DigitalBridge, then still Colony Capital, was reported to manage about $30 billion in investments.[1][2]

History

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Recent investments

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On December 20, 2021, DigitalBridge sold the bulk of its Other Equity & Debt of real estate assets to Fortress Investment Group, LLC. The total net value realized from the sale is $506.8 million, including $443.4 million received at closing, $31.2 million of net cash for asset monetizations between the sale and close, and $32.2 million of future payments.[3]

DigitalBridge closed its second flagship fund with $8.3 billion in commitments in early 2022.[4]

In April 2022, DigitalBridge bought out Wafra's stake in its investment management subsidiary for $800 million and switched from REIT to traditional C-Corp. [5] DigitalBridge announced and initiated several acquisitions during 2022 including AMP Capital's global infrastructure equity investment management business for $328 million and Switch, Inc., a Dallas-based data center company, for $11 billion.[6][7][8] The firm sold 27 percent of its stake in DataBank to Swiss Life and EDF Invest for $1.2 billion. DigitalBridge said it would own 15.5 percent of DataBank after the sale.[9]

In March 2022, DigitalBridge led a $60 million Series C funding round in Celona, an enterprise IT infrastructure company.[10] In April, DigitalBridge led a $385 million funding round for UK fiber startup Netomnia.[11] That June, DigitalBridge acquired Telenet's 3,300 telecommunication towers in Belgium, valued at 745 million euros.[12]

In August 2022, DigitalBridge and Columbia Capital formed Xenith Infrastructure Group, a fiber platform serving key Asia-Pacific markets.[13] In 2023, DigitalBridge purchased 51% of Deutsche Telekom's tower business.[14]

In February 2023, DigitalBridge completed the acquisition of AMP Capital's global infrastructure equity investment management business.[15]

In July 2023, Aware Super invested $500m into DigitalBridge owned data center firm Switch Inc.[16][17]

In September 2023, DigitalBridge completed the recapitalization of Databank, receiving $219 million in additional commitments in the final closing, totaling recapitalization commitments at $2.2 billion.[18] That same November, DigitalBridge sold 40% of Landmark Dividends to the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.[19] That month AustralianSuper invested $1.5 billion into Vantage Data Centers.[20]

In November 2023, DigitalBridge sold 40% of Landmark Dividends to the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. That same month the company secured $1.1 billion for its digital credit fund.[21][22]

In December 2023, Surf Internet secured $200 million from DigitalBridge to support continued network expansion across the Great Lakes Region.[23] In January 2024, Intel announced it was forming a new independent company around its artificial intelligence software with the backing of DigitalBridge.[24] Also in January, DigitalBridge purchased stake in Vantage Data Centers for a high valuation.[25]

Early investments

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Colony purchased Raffles International on July 18, 2005. This included the 41 hotels and resorts operated under the Raffles Hotel and Swissotel brand names. On January 30, 2006, it acquired Fairmont Hotels and Resorts of Toronto, Ontario with Kingdom Hotels International as a joint partner for US$3.24 billion.[citation needed] On April 10, 2006, it acquired French professional football team Paris Saint-Germain.[26]

On February 25, 2007, it signed a definitive agreement to take Station Casinos private in a 75%/25% split with members of the founding Fertitta family for US$5.5 billion, or US$90/share. The subsequent economic downturn caused Station Casinos to declare bankruptcy in 2009, and when it emerged in 2011 Colony Capital owned a much smaller portion after providing more cash.[27][28][29] Founder, Chairman, and CEO Thomas Barrack said it "could have been the worst investment ever" in terms of timing.[30]

On November 11, 2008, Michael Jackson transferred the title of his 2,700 acre[1] estate Neverland Ranch to Sycamore Valley Ranch Company LLC, a joint venture between Jackson (represented by attorney, L. Londell McMillan) and an affiliate of Colony Capital.[31][32][33][34] It is still unclear whether Colony Capital has a part in the property.[35] Jackson earned a total of US$35 million when he agreed to the joint venture between himself and Colony Capital.[36][37]

In March 2010, Colony arranged a financing and marketing package for Annie Leibovitz. The New York celebrity photographer had been in financial difficulty and in danger of losing to her previous lender, ArtCapital, the rights to her photographs and negatives and her three Greenwich Village townhouses. ArtCapital's credit was for $24 million.[1] In December 2010, Colony purchased Miramax from Disney with Qatar Investment Authority, Tutor-Saliba Corporation and The Weinstein Company as part of a joint venture called Filmyard Holdings for $663 million.[38][39]

In January 2017, Colony NorthStar, Inc. (NYSE: CLNS) was formed through a tri-party merger between Colony Capital, Inc. (NYSE:CLNY), NorthStar Asset Management Group Inc. (NYSE:NSAM) and NorthStar Realty Finance Corp. (NYSE:NRF).[40]

In September 2017, Colony NorthStar agreed to sell its Townsend Group unit to Aon for $475 million.[41]

In October 2017, Colony entered discussions to purchase The Weinstein Company, a movie and TV production studio that sustained damage after its co-founder, Harvey Weinstein, was accused of multiple counts of sexual harassment over three decades.[42] In the wake of the Harvey Weinstein sexual assault scandal, in late October 2017, it was reported that Colony Capital LLC had proved hesitant to purchase Weinstein Co. after a week of exclusive negotiations. Fortress Investment Group was also in talks to provide a loan to Weinstein Co.[43]

In June 2018, The New York Times reported that Colony North Star had raised more than $7 billion in investments since Donald Trump won the 2016 presidential election.[44] 24 percent of the money came from the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.[44]

Leadership

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Senior Executives

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  • Marc Ganzi - Chief Executive Officer
  • Ben Jenkins - President and Chief Investment Officer
  • Thomas Mayrhofer - Chief Financial Officer & Treasurer

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Private equity firm snaps up chance to help Leibovitz put house in order" by Henny Sender, Financial Times, March 9, 2010 02:00, Retrieved 2010-03-09.
  2. ^ Perenews.com Archived 2011-06-26 at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ "Fortress Announces Completed Acquisitions of DigitalBridge and BrightSpire Capital Assets for Total Consideration of Nearly $730". Bloomberg. Retrieved 3 July 2023.
  4. ^ "DigitalBridge surpasses its fund target by over $2.3 billion in commitments". Wireless Estimates. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
  5. ^ "DigitalBridge buys out Wafra's stake in its investment management subsidiary for $800 million". datacenterdynamics.com. Data Center Dynamics. 20 April 2022.
  6. ^ "DigitalBridge & IFM complete Switch Inc acquisition". Data Center Dynamics. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  7. ^ Swinhoe, Dan. "DigitalBridge acquires infrastructure equity business from AMP subsidiary, becomes investment manager for Expedient". www.datacenterdynamics.com. Retrieved 2022-08-01.
  8. ^ Wack, Chris (2022-05-11). "DigitalBridge, IFM Buying Data Center Company Switch for $11 Billion". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2022-08-01.
  9. ^ "DigitalBridge to sell stake in data center platform DataBank for $1.2 bln". www.bloomberg.com. 2022-06-16. Retrieved 2022-08-01.
  10. ^ "DigitalBridge Backs Celona in $60m Series C Round from Ventures Strategy". Dgtl Infra. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
  11. ^ "U.K. Fiber Startup Netomnia Raises $385 Million to Battle BT". Bloomberg. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
  12. ^ "DigitalBridge Buys Telenet's 3.3k Towers in Belgium at €745m Valuation". Dgt Linfra. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
  13. ^ "DigitalBridge and Columbia Capital Launch Xenith IG Fiber Platform in Asia-Pacific". Bloomberg. Retrieved 3 July 2023.
  14. ^ "Deutsche Telekom finalizes majority sale of GD Towers to Brookfield and DigitalBridge". Data Center Dynamics. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
  15. ^ "DigitalBridge Completes Acquisition of AMP Capital's Global Infrastructure Equity Investment Management Business". Yahoo Finance. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
  16. ^ "Aware Super invests $500m in US-based data centre platform via DigitalBridge". IPE Real Assets. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
  17. ^ "Aware Super invests $500 million into Switch Inc". Data Center Dynamics. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
  18. ^ "DigitalBridge Completes DataBank Recapitalization". Yahoo Finance. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
  19. ^ "DigitalBridge to sell 40% of Landmark Dividend to ADIA". IPE Real Assets. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
  20. ^ "AustralianSuper invests €1.5 billion in Vantage Data Centers EMEA". Data Center Dynamics. Retrieved 16 January 2024.
  21. ^ "Abu Dhabi Investment Authority acquires 40% stake in DigitalBridge's Landmark Dividend". Data Center Dynamics. Retrieved 16 January 2024.
  22. ^ "DigitalBridge's inaugural digital infrastructure credit strategy secures $1.1bn". IPE Real Assets. Retrieved 16 January 2024.
  23. ^ "Surf Internet Secures Upsized $200 million Debt Facility to Support Continued Network Expansion Across the Great Lakes Region". Yahoo Finance. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  24. ^ "Intel spins out AI software firm with backing from DigitalBridge". Reuters. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  25. ^ "New Data-Center Property Investment Signals AI Boom". WSJ. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  26. ^ "Paris Saint-Germain changes hands". bbc.co.uk. BBC News. 11 April 2006. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
  27. ^ "Station Casino Family to Remain in Control". The Wall Street Journal. August 7, 2010.
  28. ^ Weinberger, Evan. "Lenders, Colony Capital To Acquire Station Casinos - Law360". www.law360.com. Retrieved 2019-04-25.
  29. ^ Jinks, Beth; Church, Steven (June 17, 2011). "Station Casinos Exits Bankruptcy After Almost Two Years in Chapter 11". Bloomberg.
  30. ^ Perenews.com
  31. ^ Taletela.com, Michael Jackson's Neverland ranch is sold Archived July 27, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  32. ^ "Neverland May Be Jacko's Ticket to Vegas". TMZ. Retrieved 2019-04-25.
  33. ^ Ukpress.google.com, Jacko gives up Neverland ranch deed Archived December 15, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  34. ^ News.yahoo.com, Michael Jackson gives Neverland to corporation
  35. ^ Sbcvote.com Archived 2016-06-11 at the Wayback Machine
  36. ^ "Entertainment News, Celebrity News, Celebrity Gossip | E! News". E! Online. Retrieved 2019-04-25.
  37. ^ "Neverland peters out for pop's Peter Pan". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2008-11-13. Retrieved 2019-04-25.
  38. ^ Ben Fritz (December 6, 2010). "The Business Behind the Show". Los Angeles Times.
  39. ^ Claudia Eller (December 3, 2010). "The Business Behind the Show". Los Angeles Times.
  40. ^ "Document".
  41. ^ Roumeliotis, Greg. "Aon to buy real estate investment firm Townsend from Colony NorthStar". Reuters. No. 1 Sept 2017. Reuters. Archived from the original on September 2, 2017. Retrieved 5 September 2017.
  42. ^ Roumeliotis, Greg (16 October 2017). "Colony Capital in talks to buy Weinstein Co". reuters.com. Reuters. Archived from the original on 16 October 2017. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
  43. ^ Fritz, Ben (October 25, 2017). "Colony Capital's Talks to Acquire Weinstein Co. Hit Snag". The Wall Street Journal. New York City, United States. Retrieved October 26, 2017.
  44. ^ a b "Who Is Behind Trump's Links to Arab Princes? A Billionaire Friend". Retrieved 2018-06-13.
[edit]
  • Official website
  • Business data for DigitalBridge Group, Inc.:
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