Australian data‑centre operator Firmus announced on Thursday that it has priced its initial public offering at A$11.00 per share, aiming to raise A$7.1 billion (approximately $4.94 billion). The pricing gives the company an equity valuation of about $30.6 billion, making the offering the second‑largest IPO ever recorded in Australia.
Deal structure and timeline
The term sheet reviewed by Reuters shows that the book‑building process will begin on Tuesday and close on Friday, with indicative orders already exceeding the target size. Investors have the option to purchase an additional $500 million through a green‑shoe over‑allotment provision, potentially increasing the total proceeds.
Firmus expects the shares to begin trading on the Australian Securities Exchange on October 23.
Company background and growth plans
Firmus currently operates two data‑centre facilities in Australia and Singapore, with five more sites under development across the Asia‑Pacific region. In August, the company raised $2 billion in equity to accelerate the rollout of artificial‑intelligence‑focused data‑centre “factories,” pushing its post‑money valuation above $10.5 billion.
Analysts estimate that Firmus carries roughly $30 billion of debt, which would bring its enterprise value to around $60 billion once the IPO is completed.
Significance in the global IPO market
At $5 billion in proceeds, the Firmus offering would rank as the fourth‑largest IPO worldwide in 2026, trailing only SpaceX, CXMT Corp and Cerebras Systems, according to Dealogic data. Within Australia, it would be the second‑largest listed IPO after Telstra’s $10 billion share sale in 1997.
Australian IPOs typically set the price before the formal book‑building stage, after a roadshow period in which the company meets with potential investors. Firmus’s pricing reflects strong demand from both domestic and international capital sources.
Market reaction and outlook
While Firmus declined to comment on the pricing, the term sheet indicates that investor interest is robust, with orders already surpassing the planned raise. The capital raised will fund further expansion of the company’s data‑centre footprint, supporting the growing demand for cloud services and AI‑driven workloads in the region.
Industry observers note that the IPO underscores the increasing importance of data‑centre infrastructure as a backbone for digital transformation across Australia and the broader Asia‑Pacific market.
Original reporting: Appleton, WI News Feed (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
