2025年第一季度全球数字化基础设施行业更新报告（英文）_45页_2mb

Digital Infrastructure Industry Update Q1 2025 Summary

Core Content

Houlihan Lokey has released its Q1 2025 Digital Infrastructure Industry Update, providing insights into market trends, key transactions, and public market performance. The report highlights the firm's continued leadership in advising digital infrastructure and connectivity companies, as well as its role in capital solutions for the sector.

Key Industry Trends by Sector

United States Broadband

• Major Players Continue to Drive Consolidation

  • Consolidation in the fiber market continues as major operators reposition assets to streamline operations and drive growth.
  • AT&T is reportedly in talks to acquire Lumen's consumer fiber business for more than $5.5 billion.
  • Lumen is divesting its consumer fiber assets to focus on AI-driven enterprise services.
  • Crown Castle sold its fiber and small cells businesses for $8.5 billion, with Zayo acquiring its metro fiber assets for $4.25 billion.
  • Zayo announced a plan to expand its fiber network by over 5,000 route miles to meet AI and data-intensive application demands.

• Fiber Build-Outs and Announced Expansions

  • Lumos expanded into Georgia with a $500 million commitment for 5,000 miles of fiber.
  • Ripple Fiber entered Massachusetts with a $140 million expansion.
  • Lyte Fiber launched a high-speed fiber network in Marshall, Texas, covering over 120 miles.
  • Ezee Fiber expanded its network into Washington with a $400 million investment.

United States Data Centers

• CoreWeave Goes Public With $23 Billion Valuation

  • CoreWeave completed its IPO on March 28, 2025, with a valuation of $23 billion and raised $1.5 billion.
  • The company showed 737% YoY revenue growth, from $228.9 million in 2023 to $1.9 billion in 2024.
  • NVIDIA and OpenAI are key customers, with OpenAI signing a $11.9 billion five-year contract with CoreWeave.

• Data Centers Navigate the DeepSeek Disruption

  • DeepSeek introduced an open-source LLM with comparable performance to OpenAI's model at lower costs, causing a temporary drop in NVIDIA's stock.
  • Despite this, hyperscalers like Microsoft and Meta are still planning significant AI infrastructure investments in 2025.
  • The market remains optimistic about AI-driven growth, with $255 billion projected in AI data center investments for 2025.

United States Wireless Infrastructure

• M&A and Capital-Raising Activity

  • EQT acquired Crown Castle's Small Cells business for ~$4.3 billion.
  • American Tower acquired a portfolio of towers from APC Towers, estimated at ~200 to 300 towers.
  • Meritage Group and TowerPoint Capital recapitalized their wireless infrastructure assets into a new open-ended entity.
  • Connectivity Wireless secured a ~$110 million senior debt facility and a ~$60 million equity raise.
  • Airspan Networks acquired Corning's wireless business, including ~6,000 distributed antenna systems and SpiderCloud products.

• Recent Developments

  • Stock prices of American Tower, Crown Castle, and SBA Communications increased ~13% in Q1 2025.
  • U.S. mobile network operators' capex spend dropped to between $31 billion and $32 billion in 2024, ~25% lower than 2023.
  • Capex is expected to rise in 2025, with projections exceeding $32 billion.
  • FCC Chairman Brendan Carr plans to auction AWS-3 and an additional C Band auction before the end of 2025.

European Broadband

• U.K. and European Fiber Activity Overview
  • Consolidation among U.K. altnets continued, with FullFibre merging with Zzoomm to create the fifth-largest full fiber footprint.
  • Scottish National Investment Bank provided a £50 million debt tranche for GoFibre's debt financing.
  • European FTTH coverage increased 6% YoY to 75%, with demand for fiber assets still strong.
  • German and Italian markets lag behind in coverage, but consolidation is expected in the coming year due to lack of external capital.
  • The Nordics remain highly attractive due to lower competition and higher penetration rates.

European Data Centers

• Recent Sector Trends

  • FLAP-D markets dominated with 702MW pre-leased in 2024, but power shortages and land constraints in Frankfurt and London hinder new developments.
  • Take-up (344MW) outpaced new supply (306MW), leading to lower vacancy rates and rising rents.
  • Secondary markets like Milan, Madrid, Berlin, and Zurich attract more investment.
  • AI and cloud demand drive 25% CAGR growth through 2027, with $255 billion in AI data center investments projected for 2025.
  • Power grid constraints affect development timelines, especially in Amsterdam, Dublin, and Paris.
  • The U.K. has classified data centers as nationally significant infrastructure projects (NSIPs) to streamline planning and approvals.
  • Sustainability is a key focus, with operators investing in renewable energy and efficient cooling solutions, particularly in the Nordics.

• Recent Data Center Developments and M&A Transactions

  • Castleforge and Galaxy Data Centers acquired Redhill Data Centre for €92.3 million.
  • Tritax Big Box acquired a 74-acre site at Heathrow for a 147MW data center.
  • Tikehau Capital increased its investment in Eclairion to €160 million.
  • Cordiant Digital Infrastructure and TINC acquired DCU and Proximus Group's data center business.
  • KDDI's Telehouse invested €1 billion in a 60,000-square-meter, 50MW facility near Marseille.
  • HMRC is seeking a hyperscaler partner for a data center exit, with a contract valued at ~£500 million.

European Wireless Infrastructure

• M&A and Capital-Raising Activity

  • Phoenix Tower International (PTI) acquired Cellnex's Irish business for ~€971 million, becoming the largest tower owner in Ireland.
  • INWIT secured €350 million in funding from the EIB to support macro-grid infrastructure.

• Recent Sector Trends

  • The European telecom towers market maintained steady deal volumes, with sustained investor and operator interest.
  • The trend of outsourcing and optimizing passive network infrastructure continues to support network densification and operational efficiency.
  • Operators are expanding their footprints and increasing adoption levels, leading to further infrastructure investments.
  • M&A activity is expected to remain active in the coming quarters.
  • Cellnex saw a 6.5% increase in Points of Presence in Q4 2024, driven by placements in Portugal and Poland.
  • Cellnex also sold its Irish business and initiated a €800 million share buyback program.
  • The company extended its services contract with MasOrange until 2048.

Key News Stories

• Welcoming Billy Goldstein to the Digital Infrastructure Team
  • Billy Goldstein, a Managing Director with extensive experience in digital infrastructure M&A and financing, joined Houlihan Lokey.
  • He has previously worked at CDX Advisors and Goldman Sachs, advising on over $130 billion in M&A transactions.

Featured Q1 2025 Transactions

• Fiber

  • Zayo securitized B2B fiber assets in a $1.4 billion three-tranche ABS, with a Class A note rated A-/A- and priced at ICUR+140.
  • Uniti priced a $589 million ABS at credit spreads 30 bps inside price talk.
  • ALLO raised $200 million at the same credit spreads as Uniti.
  • Metro Communications raised $322 million for a three-tranche Private ABS.
  • Boldyn raised $1.2 billion in debt, including $865 million in term loans and $125 million in a seven-year note.

• Data Centers

  • ~$4 billion of data center ABS closed in Q1 2025, with Colo ABS issuers raising over $1 billion.
  • Switch completed a $1.1 billion ABS and $2.4 billion SASB CMBS offering.
  • CyrusOne, Compass, and Sabey priced well-received Hyperscale ABS deals.
  • Project finance banks committed ~$11 billion to greenfield hyperscale data centers.
  • Blue Owl led two transactions totaling $3.6 billion.
  • QTS closed two transactions totaling $3 billion for its campuses in Richmond and New Albany.
  • Rowan raised over $2 billion for the Quantum Loophole campus.

• Wireless

  • Strategic Venue Partners placed a $120 million debt facility for mission-critical in-building wireless infrastructure.

Public Markets Overview

• The S&P 500 hit an all-time high in mid-February, but a sharp sell-off occurred in early April due to tariff announcements and recession fears.
• U.S. five-year and 10-year treasuries fell 30 to 40 bps during the quarter but recovered to ~4.17% and ~4.5%, respectively, by May 15.
• SOFR remained at ~4.3%.
• Public new issue markets had a strong start but slowed by late March.
• High-yield and ABS issuers were on the sidelines in April but conditions have since improved.
• Funds with mark-to-market accounting showed paper losses, and those with retail investor redemptions experienced outflows.
• Private investors remained open for business but at higher prices.

Capital Solutions Overview

• Houlihan Lokey's Capital Solutions Group is the largest non-balance-sheet placement agent on Wall Street, with over 165 professionals and $23 billion in capital raised across ~115 transactions in the past 12 months.
• The group offers investment-grade and unrated capital solutions tailored to the needs of different issuers.
• Investment-grade capital is structured through project finance or asset-backed securities (ABS) techniques to achieve credit ratings.
• Unrated or below-investment-grade capital is often sourced from private credit investors, offering quicker execution and more flexibility.

Conclusion

The digital infrastructure sector remains a key focus for Houlihan Lokey, with continued M&A activity, capital raising, and strategic investments across fiber, data centers, and wireless infrastructure. The firm's expertise in capital solutions and industry insights makes it a trusted advisor in this dynamic market.