The South African Competition Tribunal has unconditionally approved the merger in which STANLIB Infrastructure Fund II will acquire a substantial stake in Cassava Africa Data Centres (ADC). Following the transaction, STANLIB will exercise joint control over Cassava ADC, with the potential to gain sole control in the future.
The approval comes shortly after the Competition Commission recommended the merger proceed without conditions, citing minimal concerns about competition. The Commission stated that the proposed transaction is unlikely to substantially lessen or prevent competition in any relevant markets and does not raise significant public interest issues.
Africa Data Centres currently operates seven facilities across Africa, serving over 400 enterprise and hyperscale clients. Its flagship Johannesburg facility, the Samrand Data Centre, is considered one of the continent’s most advanced data centres. Built in 2010 by Standard Bank at a cost of R1.6 billion, the Tier 4 facility features its own power sub-station, redundant terrestrial, wireless, and satellite connectivity, and full redundancy across power and cooling systems–making it highly secure and reliable for demanding financial services.
Despite its cutting-edge capabilities, the high operational costs–estimated at R1 million per month–made the facility a challenging asset for Standard Bank, which attempted to sell it at around R2 billion. In 2020, Africa Data Centres acquired the site, solidifying its position as the largest interconnected, carrier, and cloud-neutral data centre provider in Africa. The acquisition significantly extended Africa Data Centres’ pan-African network and reinforced its leadership in the continent’s digital infrastructure space.
The merger follows a strategic partnership announced last October, where STANLIB made an investment in Africa Data Centres to support its rapid expansion in South Africa. This partnership aims to meet rising demand for digital infrastructure, including the development of AI-ready data centres in Johannesburg and Cape Town, and to enable Africa Data Centres to serve major hyperscalers and enterprise clients seeking high-capacity connectivity and cloud services.
Hardy Pemhiwa, President and Group CEO of Cassava Technologies, highlighted the benefits, stating, “This partnership provides us the scale to strengthen our South African operations and support the increasing demand for digital services across the region.
The sale of Cassava ADC occurs amid turbulence for sister company Liquid Telecoms, which recently saw its credit rating downgraded from Caa1 to Caa2 by Moody’s Investors Service–a deep sub-investment grade indicating very high credit risk. Moody’s cited Liquid’s extensive market presence across over 20 African countries and its contractual relationships with major clients, but expressed concern over the company’s significant debt load.
As of August 2025, Liquid Telecoms faced $131 million (R2.27 billion) in outstanding debt maturing in early 2026, along with a $620 million (R10.7 billion) bond due in September 2026. The company has outlined plans to raise $100 million from asset sales outside its bond perimeter and to inject funds into the business, though execution risks remain.
A Liquid spokesperson confirmed ongoing efforts to complete its refinancing plans and assured that updates would be communicated once milestones are achieved.
