Equinix announced the acquisition of MainOne, worth $320 million, earlier today. The American multinational company specializes in internet connection and data centres. With 229 data centres in 27 countries on five continents, Equinix is leading in the global colocation data centre market.
MainOne, the Nigerian headquartered data centre and connectivity solutions provider, is West Africa’s leading connectivity and data plugs with branches in Ghana and Ivory Coast. Funke Opeke founded MainOne in 2010. It was West Africa’s first private-owned, open access undersea high-capacity cable.
Before MainOne, Equinix had expanded to India when it acquired GPX India for $161 million last year. It also acquired 13 data centres from Bell Canada for $780 million. Equinix, in its statement, acknowledged that the acquisition is a pivotal entry point into the continent. The California headquartered company has a long-term plan to be an African carrier neutral digital infrastructure company. The acquisition is expected to close in the first quarter of 2022.