GlobalConnect

About GlobalConnect
GlobalConnect was created through the merger of the Danish-Norwegian company GlobalConnect and the Swedish company IP-Only in December 2019. The group operates across B2B and B2C business segments: Through its B2B segment, operated under the brand of GlobalConnect, the business provides network-centric mission-critical communication infrastructure across Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland and Northern Germany for enterprise customers, and through its B2C segment, operated under the brands of IP-Only in Sweden, Homenet in Norway and Onefiber in Denmark, the business provides the installation and provision of fiber network and services to urban and rural single and multi-dwelling units in Sweden, Norway and Denmark. The goal of the group is to become the leading digital infrastructure provider to businesses, public institutions and consumers with comprehensive national and cross-border fiber networks and a unique position in Northern Europe.

GlobalConnect is well-positioned to serve the growing demand of national and international customers. The scale of the combined organization will allow strengthened innovation and investment to bring new technologies and solutions faster to the market.

In 2020, GlobalConnect had revenues of approximately EUR 581 million and employed more than 1,600 people across the Nordics and Northern Germany. The company connects more than 650,000 homes and serves approximately 30,000 enterprises.

Market trends and drivers
The B2B market is characterized by the digitalization megatrend, connectivity needs and increasing IT outsourcing and cloud application adoption that drives data volume growth in fixed fiber networks, mobile backhaul as well as data center usage. As a result, the growing demand for secure high-performance connectivity and data storage solutions, leads to opportunities for fiber network providers and suppliers of cloud enabling infrastructure. Additionally, growing mobile usage and increasing IP traffic demand is driving need for fiber connections to mobile sites.

The demand for fiber connectivity in the B2C market is supported by increasing bandwidth needs of consumers, especially, due to the proliferation of high quality on-demand video, content streaming, etc. and is expected to continue to grow at a high pace supporting continued conversion to fiber technology.

Investment potential
The investment thesis is founded on solid infrastructure characteristics, based on the provision of a mission critical infrastructure to businesses and consumers and benefiting from a high share of recurring revenue in a non-cyclical underlying market. Further, GlobalConnect & IP-Only owns a unique and well-invested fiber network, and serves a market experiencing strong tailwind.

Value creation levers include further commercialization of the existing fiber network and the acceleration of fiber build-out to capture large portions of the underlying market growth both in B2B and B2C in Northern Europe. In addition, there is value creation potential in offering enhanced end-to-end connectivity solutions to strengthen the customer proposition, focusing on operational excellence and pursuing strategic add-on acquisitions.