A&O advises DigitalBridge to acquire majority stake in GD Towers in partnership with Brookfield
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Allen & Overy has advised DigitalBridge Group, Inc. (NYSE: DBRG) which today announced that funds affiliated with its investment management arm (collectively, “DigitalBridge”) together with Brookfield Infrastructure (NYSE: BIP, TSX: BIP.UN) and its institutional partners (collectively, “Brookfield”) have reached an agreement to acquire a 51% ownership stake in GD Towers.
The transaction values GD Towers, the mobile telecommunications tower business of Deutsche Telekom AG (XETR: DTE), at EUR17.5 billion, on a consolidated basis, including the assumption of net debt.
GD Towers is Germany’s largest tower company, owning and operating over 33,000 towers and communication sites in Germany and over 7,000 towers and communication sites in Austria. GD Towers is led by an independent management team with decades of European tower company experience and a track record of delivering consistent growth and stable cash flows. GD Towers’ high-quality portfolio is supported by an anchor tenancy agreement with Deutsche Telekom, which will retain a minority 49% ownership stake in GD Towers following this transaction.
A large cross-border deal team of over 50 A&O lawyers was led by London partners Sara Pickersgill, Andrew Kenning and Ed Moser. The team in Germany was led by partners Christian Hilmes, Nicholas Ascherfeld and Hendrik Roehricht, with counsels Ruediger Kleuber and Daniel Bolm. Support was provided by senior associate Rob Hatton and associate Laura Green in London and senior associate Jan-Benedikt Fischer and associates Daniel Wendler and Naemi Czempiel in Germany. Support on the financing work was provided by associates Arvindh Rai and Rhushub Bidd in London.
Specialist input in Germany was provided by Simon Koenig, Riccardo Marinello, Oliver Ahnseel, Paul Gerlach, Hauke Jung, Heike Weber, Thomas Dieker, Merle Hermann, Stephan Buehner and Anna Kraeling.