[TORONTO] – February 3, 2020 ‒ Beanfield Technologies Inc.
(“Beanfield”), an independent telecommunications infrastructure provider in Canada serving the enterprise, carrier and multi-dwelling units markets, today announced its acquisition of Openface Inc. (“Openface”), a leading provider of fiber-based telecom services primarily to small and medium-sized businesses as well as enterprise customers. Financial terms of the private transaction were not disclosed.
Openface serves a well-diversified customer base spread across Montreal through a portfolio of 100 kilometers of owned fiber, more than 200 on-net buildings, and over 3,000 near-net buildings. The company maintains its own construction and installation team, which has given Openface a well-earned reputation for expertise in fiber construction and experienced domain knowledge of Montreal and the city’s buildings. As part of the transition, Openface’s employees will join Beanfield and the company will maintain its current location in Montreal providing Beanfield with an additional presence in the city.
“We are excited to join forces with Openface and expand our presence into Montreal,” said Dan Armstrong, CEO of Beanfield. “This acquisition will allow us to meet our customers’ growing connectivity needs as data speed and reliability become increasingly critical to business operations. Furthermore, the combined larger business will ensure customers in Canada’s two largest markets can access our best-in-class fiber solutions.”
“Beanfield shares a number of our core employee values, as well as our belief that customer relationships and employee engagement are the backbone to our business, which makes this transition an ideal next step in our growth,” said Andrew Lassner, CEO at Openface. “I am extremely proud of the growth Openface has had to-date and look forward to watching the company in its next evolution.”
The acquisition was funded through an equity commitment from Digital Colony Partners, which made a substantial investment in Beanfield in October 2019. Digital Colony Partners is managed by an affiliate of Digital Colony Management, LLC, the global digital infrastructure investment platform of Colony Capital, Inc. (NYSE: CLNY) and a leading investor, owner and operator of companies enabling the next generation of mobile and internet connectivity.
“Our goal at Digital Colony is to support connectivity around the world through our portfolio of digital infrastructure companies. Beanfield’s acquisition of Openface immediately scales its operations in Montreal,” noted Steven Sonnenstein, Managing Director at Digital Colony. Sadiq Malik, Principal at the firm added, “We are excited to back Beanfield on this important transaction and to work with the company as it takes this next step forward.”
Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP served as legal advisor to Beanfield and TD Securities led on the debt financing, while Spiegel Sohmer served as legal advisor to Openface and Richter served as financial advisor.
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About Beanfield Technologies Inc.
Beanfield installs, owns and operates the largest independent fiber optic network in Toronto, and provides comprehensive telecom services to over 700 commercial and residential buildings. Founded in 1988, Beanfield prides itself on exceptional speed and outstanding customer service. The company also operates four data centers and is facilities-based, maintaining and managing its own in-house construction and fiber maintenance teams. Beanfield is a portfolio company of Digital Colony, the global digital infrastructure investment platform of Colony Capital, Inc. (NYSE: CLNY) and a leading investor, owner and operator of companies enabling the next generation of mobile and internet connectivity. For more information visit www.beanfield.com.
About Openface Inc.
Openface Inc. (“Openface”) is a telecommunications company that owns and operates a fibre-optic network, as well as a point-to-point wireless service spanning across greater Montreal. Openface specializes in private networks, helping businesses connect all their service points across Canada. Founded in 1996, Openface has earned an enviable reputation among IT managers, CIOs and CTOs for the performance of its network and the agility with which the company deploys and connects businesses. For more information visit www.openface.com.
About Digital Colony Management, LLC
Digital Colony Management, LLC (“Digital Colony”) is the global digital infrastructure investment platform of Colony Capital, Inc. (NYSE: CLNY) and a leading investor, owner and operator of companies enabling the next generation of mobile and internet connectivity. The vehicle was launched in 2018 by Digital Bridge Holdings, LLC and Colony Capital to bring together Digital Bridge’s industry, operational and investment expertise in the telecommunications sector with Colony Capital’s global scale, operating platform and capital markets access. For more information, please visit www.digitalcolony.com.
Media Contacts
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For Beanfield
David Swain
(416) 532-1555
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For Digital Colony
Kerri Donner, Stanton
(646) 502-3565
