Abu Dhabi investment firm MGX is working with an unnamed investment bank on a potential acquisition of DayOne, the Singapore-based data center operator, according to three sources familiar with the matter speaking to Reuters. The transaction would mark MGX's first acquisition in Asia-Pacific and place sovereign Gulf capital directly inside the region's tightest AI infrastructure market.
DayOne operates a 100-megawatt facility in Singapore, one of fewer than a dozen hyperscale-ready sites in a city-state where land constraints and power allocation bottlenecks have kept new supply below 250 megawatts annually since 2021. MGX, formed in March 2024 with a reported $100 billion commitment from Mubadala and backed by Microsoft and BlackRock as anchor LPs, has spent the past nine months assembling a portfolio of AI compute and infrastructure bets. The firm has no disclosed Asia holdings. DayOne's sole asset sits inside the Tai Seng submarket, roughly 8 kilometers from the equinix SG3 interconnection hub and within fiber distance of subsea cable landings that carry over 60 percent of intra-Asia internet traffic.
The timing reflects a structural mismatch. Hyperscalers and AI labs need low-latency, high-density capacity in Singapore to serve Southeast Asian model inference workloads. Current Singapore data center inventory stands near 1.1 gigawatts, but utilization runs above 88 percent and the government's moratorium on new builds—lifted selectively in 2022—still limits annual additions to pre-approved projects. DayOne's 100-megawatt footprint, if fully leased at current Singapore rack rates of roughly $250 per kilowatt per month, would generate approximately $30 million in annual revenue at stabilized occupancy. The valuation multiple implied by a multi-billion-dollar price—likely $2 billion to $3 billion based on comparable recent transactions—suggests MGX is underwriting future expansion rights or land parcels adjacent to the existing site. The firm's LP base, anchored by Microsoft, creates natural offtake alignment. Microsoft has committed over $80 billion to global data center capex through 2025 and operates two Azure regions in Singapore with persistent capacity constraints.
Allocators should watch three follow-on signals. First, whether MGX secures expansion land or additional power allocation from Singapore's Energy Market Authority within 90 days of close—expansion rights would justify the valuation and signal deeper government engagement. Second, whether DayOne's existing tenants include any of MGX's anchor LPs; lease assignment clauses and offtake agreements typically surface in regulatory filings within 60 days post-transaction. Third, whether MGX announces a second APAC acquisition before mid-2025. The firm's scale and LP composition suggest a regional build-out strategy, not a single trophy asset. Comparable Gulf-backed infrastructure plays—Mubadala's $15 billion Khazanah Digital joint venture, PIF's $40 billion gaming and entertainment fund—both executed three to five anchor deals within 18 months of formation.
The deal, if completed, would make MGX the first Gulf sovereign vehicle to own hyperscale data center assets in Singapore outright, bypassing joint ventures or passive stakes. DayOne's management has not commented. MGX declined to respond to Reuters inquiries.