Firmus Technologies has withdrawn its ambitious $44 billion initial public offering on the ASX, a record-setting float which aimed to raise $US5.5 billion. The data centre developer, which provides infrastructure for artificial intelligence model training and processing, faced waning interest from both offshore and local investors. Tectonic Investment Management, one of Firmus’s largest and oldest backers, now suggests a potential listing on the Nasdaq could yield even greater returns than the initially planned Australian float.
The ASX listing was scuttled as key offshore firm Coatue Management reduced its anticipated allocation, while major Australian superannuation funds largely opted out. “This is clearly a setback for Firmus and our investment in it,” Tectonic chief investment officer Ben Haan informed investors, acknowledging the disappointment of withdrawing the IPO days before its proposed listing. Haan now considers a Nasdaq listing the most likely alternative, given US investors’ stronger grasp of AI and data centre stocks, with many neocloud peers already on the tech-heavy index.
Tectonic, which holds over 5 per cent of the company, views the float’s failure as reflecting investor scepticism about the proposed valuation, rather than Firmus’s underlying business. The firm is carefully managing its substantial Firmus exposure. Options for Firmus’s future path, expected in six to twelve months, include a trade sale, a merger with another listed neocloud, or remaining private for longer. Ellerston Capital, another key shareholder, also maintained a positive outlook, citing strong relationships with tech partners like Nvidia and OpenAI, and expressed confidence in a Nasdaq listing next year, projecting significant EBITDA growth. However, Tectonic also acknowledged risks, including construction delays and potential contract lapses.
