Eight months ago, bankers were telling their clients they could get it for $11 billion to $12 billion. It has just sold for double that.
The last time dealmakers had their socks knocked off on such a high-profile transaction like this was a decade ago when NSW sold its Port Botany and Port Kembla to private capital for $5.1 billion, or 25 times EBITDA., an “ooof” went around the room – we were all earlier told to think about a $3 billion deal at maybe 15 times EBITDA.
Bidders who thought it may be worth $11 billion to $12 billion at the start of the year paid twice as much six months later. Why? It’s AI, the rise of cloud computing and what’s hot – data centres and digital infrastructure.Those in the auction said AirTrunk’s forecast earnings went up at every turn. As they did, required cheque sizes got bigger, and bidders starting rolling together to form bigger consortiums better able to swallow such a giant.
Bankers made out like bandits, as did law firms whose private capital M&A teams are now as big as their public markets practices, and fund managers like Macquarie Asset Management and PSP Investments.