Investment company, Carlyle is currently in talks with prospective buyers to sell its 24 percent stake in Nxtra. Several investment firms, including KKR and DigitalBridge, are reportedly in the race for a minority stake in Airtel’s Nxtra data center unit. Other interested buyers include sovereign wealth funds, such as GIC and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, as well as investment firms Stonepeak, DigitalBridge, KKR, and Permira.

Nxtra presently operates 12 data centers in India, alongside 120 Edge facilities or Points-of-Presence. The company is jointly owned by Indian telco Airtel and Carlyle, with Carlyle acquiring a 25 percent stake in 2020 for approximately $235 million, eventually settling for 24 percent in 2022.

Airtel has recently expanded its Nxtra operations into Africa, unveiling plans for a 34MW data center in Lagos, Nigeria, and another facility in Kenya. The company has disclosed operating 40 Edge locations across the African continent.

The potential acquirers mentioned in the reports boast experience in the digital infrastructure space. Stonepeak has investments in APAC operator DigitalEdge, as well as US-based CoreSite and Cologix. DigitalBridge’s portfolio includes Vantage and Atlas Edge among its numerous data center holdings. KKR owns CyrusOne, alongside BlackRock-owned GIP, while Blackstone holds QTS in the US. 

GIC has invested in various Equinix xScale projects, while the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority recently acquired a stake in DigitalBridge’s Landmark Dividend LLC.

Nxtra’s value is underscored by its integration with Airtel’s extensive telecommunications infrastructure and enterprise customer base. Airtel, a global communications solutions provider serving over 490 million customers across 17 countries in South Asia and Africa, possesses vast digital infrastructure assets, including fiber and data centers, catering to two billion people globally.