Why tech, data centre IPOs are facing delays – and what investors can expect of the market now
This comes as interest rates have climbed in the past month
Tech, AI, and data centre companies have halted their initial public offering (IPO) plans due to rising interest rates, according to experts interviewed by The Business Times. This includes Blackstone-backed Airtrunk’s Singapore REIT and data centre operator Firmus. OpenAI, an AI giant, also delayed its listing amid AI safety concerns.
Interest rates have climbed since September, with the US Federal Reserve hiking rates by 25 basis points on September 16 to a range of 3.75 to 4 percent. This makes raising funds through equity or bonds more challenging for companies, as borrowing costs rise. Data centre REITs, in particular, are impacted as they must refinance debt at higher interest rates, squeezing dividends and making them struggle to outpace long yields of government bonds.
Asset managers may shift capital away from dividend-paying counters like REITs into US Treasuries or high-grade corporate bonds, affecting Airtrunk’s proposed Singapore data centre listing. The AI-related project market is also crowded, leading companies to think twice about listing and facing lower subscription levels. Meanwhile, hyperscalers like Microsoft, Amazon, and Meta see tighter spreads as investors seek less risk.
DayOne, a Singapore-headquartered data centre operator, has seen its revenue triple to US$512 million in the first half of the year and raised over US$6 billion in equity since 2024, despite facing a data centre operator listing freeze. DayOne's valuation, however, is around 20 times annualised sales of US$1 billion, with widening net losses of US$81.9 million for the six months ended June 30, 2024. Experts expect a valuation haircut but not a retreat, given the challenging environment.
Written by urgent.news from The Business Times - Companies & Markets's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
