Blackstone’s open-ended infrastructure fund has bought a 35% stake in cell tower platform Phoenix Tower International (PTI).
Blackstone Infrastructure Partners has invested an undisclosed amount to buy the stake in PTI from Manulife Investment Management.
Recep Kendircioglu, the head of infrastructure investments at Manulife Investment Management, said: “Our investment in PTI supported our goal to expand digital connectivity globally, and, together with the PTI team, we achieved a great outcome.”
Founded in 2013, PTI operates over 14,000 towers across 18 countries including the US, across Latin America, and France. The company’s expansion is focused throughout the Americas and Europe.
Greg Blank, senior managing director in Blackstone’s infrastructure business said: “Cell towers represent one of the highest-quality and most durable infrastructure asset classes given their mission-critical nature and long-term growth tailwinds.
“We look forward to supporting PTI’s continued growth and expansion by leveraging Blackstone’s scale and resources.”
Dagan Kasavana, the CEO of Phoenix Tower International, said: “There is a massive growth opportunity in the wireless infrastructure sector across the world, and I am pleased to have world-class partners from Blackstone on my team to continue to expand the business. We are excited to continue the growth journey for PTI with Blackstone Infrastructure.”
Blackstone has in the past invested in PTI through Blackstone Tactical Opportunities, an opportunistic investment platform.
The latest investment in PTI is the most recent example of digital infrastructure platform investments for Blackstone, the company said.
Most recently, Blackstone Infrastructure Partners, Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust and other unnamed funds managed by the private-equity giant bought listed QTS Realty Trust in a deal that values the data-centre operator at $10bn (€8.64bn).
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