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  • CPP Investments and Equinix

CPP Investments and Equinix's acquisition of atNorth from Partners Group

 Key Facts / Transaction overview / Strategic rationale / What value did we bring? / Deal team

Key facts


We are advising CPP Investments and Equinix on the joint acquisition as global
deal counsel, as well as advising Equinix on its joint venture arrangements with CPP Investments.

 

US$4bn

enterprise value

 

 

Eight

jurisdictions, one integrated deal counsel

 

 

16 years

of trusted advice to longstanding client, Equinix

 

Transaction overview


On 27 February 2026
, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and Equinix, Inc. announced they have entered into a joint agreement to purchase atNorth from Partners Group at an enterprise value of US$4 billion. The joint venture will be owned c.60% by CPP Investments and c.40% by Equinix.

Completion of the acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals.

We managed both the consortium negotiation between Equinix and CPP Investments and the successful joint acquisition of atNorth through a competitive auction process

Strategic rationale

 

atNorth is a leading Nordic data centre provider

Offering high-density colocation and built-to-suit services. Its portfolio includes eight operational data centres, with several sites under development and plans for further expansion, across Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden.

 

 

Continued rapid scaling

The agreement between CPP Investments and Equinix will support atNorth in its continued rapid scaling, through capturing opportunities created by rising demand for data centre infrastructure.

 

 

Builds out European presence

The acquisition further enhances CPP Investments’ global data centre strategy and builds out its presence in Europe. 

 

 

Currently operate eight data centres

Equinix, one of the world’s largest digital infrastructure companies, currently operates eight data centres in the Nordics, and the acquisition is complementary to its connectivity services and global footprint.

 

 

What value did we bring?


Click below to discover more

Leveraging our full‑service M&A platform and deep asset‑level understanding and experience advising data centre operators, (including on power, permitting and real estate through to customer and capacity offtake leasing), we guided CPP Investments and Equinix through legal and commercial complexities to structure a deal that supports long-term value creation.

A global transaction, involving a Canadian pension fund and a listed US corporate jointly acquiring a Nordic platform from a Swiss private equity house. Acting as global deal counsel, we coordinated specialist advice across multiple jurisdictions to ensure a seamless service.

We managed both the consortium negotiation between Equinix and CPP Investments and the successful joint acquisition of atNorth through a competitive auction process. This required strategic and tactical judgement, high speed and quality of execution.

Drawing on our experience in the most significant antitrust decisions in the data centre space, including the landmark Equinix TelecityGroup case, we applied sophisticated antirust and regulatory expertise where needed.

Acting as global deal counsel, we coordinated specialist advice across multiple jurisdictions to ensure a seamless service.

Deal team

James Cook
James Cook Partner
Hemita Sumanasuriya
Hemita Sumanasuriya Partner
Richard Smith
Richard Smith Partner
Simon Bartle
Simon Bartle Partner

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