- Funds to be returned to shareholders
- Share price rises amid NAV discount
Digital 9 Infrastructure Trust (DGI9) will wind down by selling all its assets and returning cash to investors, the board taking the decision after a shareholder-driven review.
The wind-down, which still requires the approval of shareholders and regulators, comes after a turbulent few months for the data centre and internet infrastructure investment trust. The trust's shares were down over 70 per cent in the 12 months to close on Friday. The closure announcement saw them climb 15 per cent in early trading.
Digital 9 will now start a sale process for its wholly-owned assets. It has deferred the sale of its 48-per-cent stake in Arqiva, and may look at "capital markets alternatives" for the holding in the TV and radio infrastructure business, valued at £345mn as of 30 June.
In September, DGI9 said there was "significant doubt" about its future and that it may struggle to pay £375mn in debt refinancing due by March 2025. In October, DGI9 said it would sell Verne Global, a Finnish data centre business, but days later, Aqua Ventures, which owns 3.47 per cent of DGI9, criticised the move, arguing DGI9 initially suggested it would only sell a stake in Verne Global and demanded a review.
Aqua Ventures also raised other concerns about DGI9's director turnover, its investment manager Triple Point, which runs the controversial Triple Point Social Housing (SOHO), and the "unsustainability of its dividend policy". DGI9 rejected the review while the Verne Global sale was ongoing but agreed to it after the deal completed in November.
This morning, the data centre and internet infrastructure investment trust's board said it had completed the review and "ultimately concluded that a managed wind-down of the company is likely the best route to [maximise shareholder value] and seek to address the discount to NAV that impacts our shareholders".
