Equinix wraps sale of 8 data centers to Digital Realty

Equinix has completed the sale of eight European data center assets to Digital Realty for $874 million, fulfilling a mandate by the European Commission to gain approval of its Telecity Group acquisition.

The eight facilities Equinix sold to Digital Realty include: TelecityGroup's Bonnington House, Sovereign House, Meridian Gate and Oliver's Yard data centers and Equinix's West Drayton data center in London; TelecityGroup's Science Park and Amstel Business Park I in Amsterdam; and TelecityGroup's Lyonerstrasse data center in Frankfurt.

To bolster its European data center holdings, Equinix also struck a deal to purchase Digital Realty's operating business in St. Denis, Paris, including its real estate and data center facility for $210 million. This facility currently houses Equinix's PA2 and PA3 International Business Exchange (IBX) data centers.

After meeting customary regulatory clearances, Equinix expects the acquisition of the Paris data center facilities to close in the third quarter.

Equinix's Telecity acquisition is transformational in that it immediately deepens its presence in the European data center market, making it more appealing to not only European clients, but also U.S. clients that have facilities in the region.

By purchasing Telecity, Equinix added seven new markets in Europe to its portfolio including Dublin, Helsinki, Istanbul, Manchester, Sofia, Stockholm, and Warsaw. Equinix now operates 145 IBX data center facilities in 40 markets.

From an industry-wide perspective, Equinix's moves in Europe and the United States will enable it to gain new revenue growth opportunities as more enterprises and SaaS providers migrate to the private and hybrid clouds.

Equinix recently told investors that the hybrid cloud market is a $60 billion opportunity that it can take a part in as a data center player.

For more:
- see the release

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