CVC DIF to acquire leading German data centre operator firstcolo from Cube Infrastructure Managers

•    firstcolo is a leading Frankfurt-based enterprise data centre operator serving more than 350 customers across two operational colocation data centres
•    Cube Infrastructure Managers has prepared firstcolo for its next phase of growth and now CVC DIF will support firstcolo in delivering on its ambitious growth strategy to become the leading German colocation data centre platform, starting with a new 24 MW greenfield development in the Frankfurt metropolitan region 
•    The investment provides exposure to the structurally supply-constrained Frankfurt data centre market, supported by growing demand for resilient digital infrastructure, cloud services and enterprise digitalization

CVC DIF, the infrastructure business of leading global private markets manager CVC, has agreed to acquire a significant majority stake in firstcolo Holding GmbH (“firstcolo”), a leading Frankfurt-based colocation data centre operator, from Cube Infrastructure Managers. The investment will be made through DIF Value Add IV and is expected to close by the end of September 2026, subject to customary conditions.

Founded in 2007 and headquartered in Frankfurt, firstcolo provides colocation, dedicated cloud hardware, cloud, connectivity and managed services to more than 350 enterprise customers. The company operates two established, near-fully-utilised data centres in Frankfurt and combines resilient infrastructure with a differentiated one-stop-shop service offering. This integrated model supports long-standing customer relationships, recurring revenues and low churn. firstcolo has scaled over recent years under Cube Infrastructure Managers’ and is well positioned to continue to develop with CVC as its new partner.

A central element of firstcolo's next phase of growth is FRA7, a new data centre under construction in Rosbach in the Frankfurt metropolitan region. FRA7 will provide 24 MW of total gross capacity. The site, power supply, required permits and fixed-price turnkey construction arrangements are already in place. Firm tenant commitments, combined with strong customer demand, provide a solid foundation for the facility’s ramp-up. The development is being delivered in partnership with the regional utility provider, which will secure the energy supply for FRA7. Waste heat from the data centre will be made available to support the local district heating supply.

With CVC DIF's support, firstcolo intends to build on its established enterprise platform by successfully delivering FRA7 and developing further high-performance data centres in Frankfurt and other attractive German data centre markets over the coming years. The company’s ambition is to establish a scalable platform that combines resilient infrastructure, energy-efficient design and differentiated enterprise services. firstcolo will continue to be led by its experienced founder-led management team, including CEO and Co-founder Jerome Evans, COO and Co-founder Nicolaj Kamensek, and CFO Dennis Bergfeld.

Willem Jansonius, Managing Partner at CVC DIF and Co-head of the DIF Value Add strategy, commented: "firstcolo represents a rare opportunity to invest in a high-quality, founder-led colocation platform in an attractive and supply-constrained FLAP-D data centre markets. The company combines a resilient, cash-generative existing business with a substantially de-risked expansion project and a differentiated service offering for enterprise customers. We look forward to working with Jerome, Nicolaj and the wider firstcolo team to deliver FRA7 and support the company's development into the leading German colocation platform."

Stefan Moosmann, Head of DACH at CVC DIF, commented: "firstcolo is a strong example of CVC DIF's local-for-local approach in action. The opportunity was sourced through our Frankfurt team's local network and developed in seamless collaboration with our pan-European digital infrastructure team. By combining local market access with deep sector and execution expertise, we were able to develop strong conviction in the business and a clear plan to support its next phase of growth."

Jerome Evans, CEO and Co-founder of firstcolo, commented: "This partnership marks an important new chapter for firstcolo and strengthens our ability to execute our long-term growth strategy. FRA7 is more than a single data centre development: it is the first building block of a scalable, high-performance infrastructure platform designed to support the next generation of AI, cloud and enterprise workloads in Germany. Together with CVC DIF, we intend to build on our strong foundation, expand our presence in the Frankfurt region and develop further high-performance data centres in attractive German markets over the coming years. Our ambition is to create a sustainable and sovereign infrastructure platform that combines technical excellence, operational reliability and long-term customer value."

Nicolaj Kamensek, COO and Co-founder of firstcolo, commented: "Since firstcolo was founded, we have built our business around technical excellence, operational reliability and close relationships with our customers. Our next phase of growth will apply these principles at a significantly larger scale. FRA7 is being designed as a highly efficient, AI-ready facility with the power, cooling, connectivity and operational processes required for demanding high-density workloads. The experience gained through its delivery will provide a practical blueprint for the planning and operation of further data centres. As we expand, our priority will be to maintain consistent standards across the platform while preserving the personal support, short decision-making paths and operational responsiveness on which our customers rely."