CHARLOTTE, N.C. and
DENVER, June 13, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Peak 10 Inc. ("Peak
10"), a portfolio company of GI Partners, and ViaWest, Inc.
("ViaWest"), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Shaw Communications Inc.
(TSX: SJR.B; NYSE: SJR), today announced they have entered into a
definitive agreement under which ViaWest will be acquired by Peak
10 for all-cash consideration of US$1.675
billion and the companies will combine. The transaction
creates a leading provider of colocation, connectivity, cloud, and
managed solutions. GI Partners, a former investor in ViaWest,
acquired Peak 10 in 2014 and will remain the majority shareholder
of the combined company.
This strategic move accelerates both companies' commitment to
growth and reinforces their customer-first approach. The combined
company's operations will span 20 domestic and international
markets including Atlanta,
Austin, Charlotte, Cincinnati, Dallas, Denver, Ft.
Lauderdale, Jacksonville,
Las Vegas, Louisville, Minneapolis, Nashville, Phoenix, Portland, Raleigh, Richmond, Salt Lake
City, Tampa, Amsterdam, and Calgary. The increased scale
and broad geographic coverage will enable the combined company to
serve its customers across an enhanced platform of products and
capabilities. Chris Downie, the
Chief Executive Officer of Peak 10, will be the Chief Executive
Officer of the combined company and Nancy
Phillips, the Chief Executive Officer of ViaWest, will
become the executive Chair of the Board of the combined
company.
Peak 10 and ViaWest's 4,400 customers will benefit from the
expanded value proposition of the combined entity, including
enhanced cloud and interconnection capabilities, highly redundant
data centers, and back office and operational support systems
automation. The combined company will serve its customers' IT
infrastructure needs across multiple dimensions:
- Product portfolio: The combination diversifies and
enhances the company's capability set, providing customers with
broad choices across colocation, connectivity, private and public
cloud utilities, as well as advanced managed solutions
- Innovation: Leveraging each company's investments in
advanced hybrid IT solutions, the combination will scale resources
to continue its commitment to extending product reach and
functionality
- Operational footprint: The new company will feature
expansive capacity across 20 major domestic and international
markets
- Management: The company's combined best-in-class
management team will drive continued strong execution across
existing and new markets
"By joining forces, Peak 10 and ViaWest will create a leading
hybrid IT infrastructure and solutions provider well-positioned to
deliver significant benefits to our customers," said Chris Downie, Chief Executive Officer of Peak
10. "This transformative transaction will expand our scale and
geographic reach and we are excited to bring together two companies
with cohesive operating philosophies and complementary strengths.
Our goal is to deploy best practices across the combined company to
provide exceptional solutions to our customer base, while driving
best-in-class performance by taking advantage of new opportunities
for growth."
Nancy Phillips, Chief Executive
Officer of ViaWest, said, "As we contemplated strategic
partnerships, we quickly concluded that Peak 10 offered a
complementary footprint, shared focus on the customer, and talented
team. I'm excited for our customers and employees because this
combination will deliver an unparalleled customer experience and
create dynamic growth opportunities."
"As an active investor in the IT infrastructure space for over
15 years, we are excited to bring these two growing companies
together," said David Mace, a
Managing Director at GI Partners. "Peak 10 and ViaWest will be a
powerful combination to support customers' expanding data needs in
domestic and international markets. We support the combined
company's commitment to service excellence and look forward to
partnering with the leadership team to help drive the next phase of
growth."
The transaction is anticipated to close in the third quarter of
2017, subject to customary closing conditions. DH Capital acted as
financial advisor and Paul Hastings LLP acted as legal counsel to
Peak 10 and GI Partners.
About Peak 10 and ViaWest
Peak 10 and ViaWest empower
today's enterprises to meet current and future business challenges
through advanced hybrid IT infrastructure. The combined company's
operations will span 20 domestic and international markets. Some of
the world's largest businesses trust Peak 10 and ViaWest to deliver
secure, compliant and flexible IT infrastructure through
colocation, connectivity, cloud, and managed solutions that give
enterprises the freedom to use just one provider to perform faster,
manage risk, and stay competitive as their industries evolve. Both
companies have nearly two decades of history and their committed
technical support staff and 100% SLA underscore the steadfast
reliability of their solutions. For more information on Peak 10,
please visit www.peak10.com. For more information on ViaWest,
please visit www.viawest.com.
About GI Partners
GI Partners is a leading private investment firm based in
San Francisco. The firm has raised
over $14 billion in capital through
private equity and real estate strategies from recognized
institutional investors across the globe. GI Partners' private
equity team is active in a number of key sectors, including IT
Infrastructure, Healthcare, Software, and Services. For more
information on GI Partners and its entire portfolio, please visit
www.gipartners.com.
For media inquiries, contact:
Peak 10
Lydia Fakhouri
lfakhouri@matternow.com
(971) 246-7896
GI Partners
Chris Tofalli
(914) 834-4334
chris@tofallipr.com
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SOURCE Peak 10