TMT WORLD CONGRESS 2024

M&A and Financing in Digital Infra, Telecoms, Cloud and Software

Leaders across Digital Infrastructure discuss the most critical issues currently facing the sector, including how the next wave of transactions will shape up.

• Growth strategies – Choosing the next path to growth

• Analysing subsector opportunities: MNOs, fibre, towers, datacentres, cloud & services

• Deal structures – how are transactions evolving and what impact is access to financing having on the market?

• State of the market – what deals are being done in Managed Services, IT and cloud?
• What is the impact of AI on value and growth in the cloud market? 
• How are companies responding to external headwinds and what are the priorities for businesses for the next 12 months?
• Examining how to build a managed services platform business via consolidation.
• Investor perspective – which partnership models are most effective and what are PEs looking for?

Exploring how European software leaders are strategically leveraging data-driven business models, exploring effective monetization strategies, navigating regulatory considerations, and capitalizing on emerging technologies to drive future growth and revenue in the industry.

• Software M&A review: what’s been done, what is expected in the pipeline and how are valuations and access to financing changing?
• How are European software leaders strategically incorporating data-driven approaches to enhance decision-making and operational efficiency in their business models?
• What innovative strategies are businesses exploring to monetize data? 
• How are businesses leveraging data as a strategic asset to not only optimize internal processes but also create new revenue streams, fostering sustained growth and competitiveness in the software industry?
• Looking ahead: how can companies and investors stay ahead of the curve and position for the next wave of dealmaking?

Headwinds continue to impact the digital infrastructure market going into 2024. Finance leaders discuss how to navigate these challenges and how to build opportunities going forward: 

• How are deal structures and the financing ecosystem evolving in the current macroeconomic environment? 
• How are capital constraints altering dynamics and how can sponsors navigate this? Which sectors within TMT are more active?
• To what extent will private credit continue to play a major role in the market? How are traditional lenders responding? 
• What emerging types of financing are we seeing in terms of ABS financing, ESG-linked notes and other new structures? 

• Understanding strategies for growth: building a brand, local to regional, pricing and product strategy
• Looking at the current dynamics around financing, consolidation, and competition across FTTX 
• Assessing the move to wholesale and looking at the differing reasoning and strategies 
• Analysing the push on convergence and whether altnets need to consider following suit

As the towers, connectivity and shared network infrastructure market develops, many operators are now looking at the next phase of growth, either via stepping into new service areas or building/acquiring new assets to compliment their core businesses and become more ESG compliant. Leaders from the sector look at where the opportunities are: 

•    Which M&A transactions have taken place in connectivity infrastructure, what’s in the pipeline, and how supportive are capital markets for deals?
•    Future towerco models and synergies - which business models are working, and where?
•    Private networks – where are the opportunities for investment?
•    Partnership models – strategies for working with MNOs or financial sponsors to build the next phase of connectivity 
•    Power, ESG and optimising infrastructure management for 2024 and beyond
•    Determining the next phase of growth across network solutions, fibre, small cell and DAS, 5G and edge computing

This panel will dissect the current landscape for UK Enterprise Fibre leaders, examining the factors influencing growth trajectories and assessing the evolving M&A opportunities within the sector.

• Analysing the prevailing conditions and competitive forces shaping the growth prospects for UK Enterprise Fibre leaders.
• Regulatory Framework and Policy Implications: Understanding the impact of regulatory decisions on market dynamics and M&A opportunities in the fibre industry.
• Exploring how substantial investments in infrastructure are driving growth potential and shaping M&A strategies.