(Feb 11): GDS Holdings Ltd is considering a US initial public offering IPO) of its international arm that could raise about US$500 million (RM2.23 billion), according to people familiar with the matter.

The Chinese data-centre operator may try to list DayOne, which runs its facilities in Hong Kong and Southeast Asia, as soon as this year, the people said. DayOne, which was formerly known as GDS International (GDSI), is in talks with banks about working on the IPO, they added, asking not to be identified discussing a private matter.

Deliberations are ongoing and may not lead to a deal, the people said. GDS didn’t respond to requests for comment. 

GDS shares jumped as much as 15% in Hong Kong, following the Bloomberg News report on the potential IPO, hitting the highest since July 2022. Tuesday’s surge took GDS’ gain over the past 12 months to more than 420%, giving the company a market value of US$6 billion.

Bloomberg reported in December that another Chinese data-centre firm, Yovole, is considering an IPO in the US. Beijing-based Vnet Group Inc already trades in New York, where its American depositary receipts have climbed roughly 160% in the past two months alone. 

GDS raised US$1.2 billion for DayOne in December from investors, including SoftBank Vision Fund and Citadel chief executive officer Ken Griffin, leaving it with a stake of about 35.6% in the unit.

Other DayOne backers include Coatue Management, Hillhouse Investment and Boyu Capital.

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