Brookfield Buys Cyxtera Data Centers for $775M

Cyxtera Technologies, Inc., a global data center colocation and interconnection provider operating approximately 60 facilities across 23 metropolitan areas, filed chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey on June 4, 2023. The filing followed a period in which the Federal Reserve's rate increases more than doubled Cyxtera's annualized interest expense on funded debt — from $35.9 million in Q1 2022 to $75.7 million in Q1 2023 — while approximately $1.02 billion in loan maturities converged on a 2024 deadline. The company entered chapter 11 with a signed restructuring support agreement backed by approximately 64% of first lien lenders and its private equity sponsors, BC Partners and Medina Capital.

The case moved from petition to confirmation in approximately 5.5 months. After initially pursuing a recapitalization, the debtors toggled to a sale track in November 2023, executing an asset purchase agreement with Phoenix Data Center Holdings LLC, an affiliate of Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P., for $775 million in cash. The court confirmed the Fourth Amended Joint Plan on November 17, 2023, and the plan went effective on January 12, 2024. General unsecured creditors received interests in a GUC Trust funded with $8.65 million against approximately $307 million in filed proofs of claim. As of early 2026, the case remains in a post-effective wind-down phase, with the GUC Trustee processing multiple rounds of omnibus claim objections.

What has changed in Cyxtera Technologies, Inc. since this article was published?

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Debtor(s)	Cyxtera Technologies, Inc. (now CTI Liquidation Co., Inc.) and debtor affiliates
Court	U.S. Bankruptcy Court, District of New Jersey (Newark)
Case Number	23-14853
Petition Date	June 4, 2023
Judge	Hon. John K. Sherwood
Confirmation Date	November 17, 2023
DIP Facility	~$200.5 million ($150 million new money, ~$50.5 million bridge roll-up); agent: Wilmington Savings Fund Society, FSB

CenturyLink Carve-Out, De-SPAC, and Rate Pressure

Cyxtera was founded in 2017 by affiliates of BC Partners and Medina Capital as a carve-out of CenturyLink's data center business. The company offered a suite of colocation and interconnection services across its approximately 60 data centers in North America, Europe, and Asia, serving more than 2,300 customers. Colocation accounted for 83% of 2022 revenue, interconnection for 11%, enterprise bare metal for 1%, and deployment and support services for 5%. Over 90% of revenue came from recurring, fixed-term customer contracts, and the customer base was predominantly enterprise-oriented — 90% of customers had more than 1,000 employees. The top customer, Lumen Technologies, accounted for approximately 10% of revenue; the top 20 customers (excluding Lumen) contributed roughly 32%; and the remaining 58% to 60% came from all other customers.

In 2021, the company went public through a de-SPAC combination with Starboard Value Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ: SVAC), receiving approximately $654 million in proceeds. Lumen Technologies retained an approximately 6.4% equity stake and accounted for roughly 8% of monthly recurring revenue. A $310 million second lien term facility that had been in place since 2017 was fully repaid on July 29, 2021 using the de-SPAC proceeds.

Capital structure and rate pressure. As of the petition date, the debtors had approximately $1.0199 billion in total funded debt obligations — approximately $1.0115 billion in principal and $8.3 million in accrued interest. The prepetition capital structure consisted of approximately $774.1 million in 2017 first lien term loans maturing May 1, 2024, $97.0 million in 2019 first lien term loans maturing May 1, 2024, a $98.3 million drawn revolving credit facility maturing April 2, 2024, and a $50.5 million bridge facility maturing May 1, 2024. The company additionally owed approximately $38.3 million on account of equipment finance leases as of the petition date. As the Federal Reserve raised rates through 2022 and into 2023, Cyxtera's quarterly annualized interest expense on funded debt more than doubled, from $35.9 million to $75.7 million between Q1 2022 and Q1 2023. The First Day Declaration stated that the resulting compression left insufficient cash flow for operations and capital investment, and the convergence of all major loan maturities in 2024 left no viable refinancing path outside of a court-supervised restructuring.

RSA and prepetition marketing process. Starting in late 2021, Cyxtera began exploring strategic alternatives with the assistance of Kirkland & Ellis LLP and Guggenheim Securities, LLC. By early 2023, the company had extended certain debt maturities and was actively considering a bankruptcy filing as one possible path. In April 2023, Cyxtera skipped an interest payment while negotiations with its lender group continued. An ad hoc group of first lien lenders, represented by Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP and Houlihan Lokey, Inc., engaged in negotiations that produced a restructuring support agreement on May 4, 2023. The RSA was signed by lenders holding approximately 64% of first lien claims, along with the consenting sponsors (BC Partners and Medina Capital). A parallel marketing process launched on March 27, 2023 explored potential investment or sale transactions. Members of the ad hoc first lien group provided a $50 million bridge facility to fund operations through the filing date. On the petition date, Cyxtera announced it was taking the next step to implement the RSA through the chapter 11 process.

DIP Facility and Bridge Roll-Up

The debtors obtained a postpetition financing facility totaling approximately $200.5 million in aggregate principal under the DIP motion filed at the outset of the case. The facility comprised three components: $150 million in new money (with $40 million available under the interim order and $110 million funded into escrow pending the final order), a roll-up of approximately $36 million in principal plus approximately $468,512 in accrued and unpaid interest on account of prepetition bridge facility loans, and a $14 million superpriority term loan facility from transferred loans.

Pricing and agent. Interest on SOFR loans was set at SOFR plus 8.50%, with ABR loans at ABR plus 7.50%. Wilmington Savings Fund Society, FSB served as administrative agent and collateral agent under the Senior Secured Superpriority Debtor-In-Possession Credit Agreement dated June 7, 2023. The first day filings were supported by declarations from Eric Koza, the CRO appointed through AP Services, LLC, and Raymond Li, who served as Deputy CRO.

Court approvals. The court entered an interim cash collateral order on June 6, 2023, two days after the petition date, providing immediate access to $40 million in new money. The final DIP order was entered on July 19, 2023, releasing the remaining $110 million from escrow and finalizing the roll-up and transferred loan components. A bar date order was entered the same day, setting August 15, 2023 as the general deadline for filing proofs of claim. Cyxtera was one of several mega corporate restructurings to file in the District of New Jersey in 2023, alongside Bed Bath & Beyond, Rite Aid, and WeWork — cases that collectively represented approximately $35 billion in liabilities passing through the Newark division.

Dual-Track Plan and Sale to Brookfield

The case was structured around a dual-track process: a recapitalization in which first lien lenders would receive new equity, or a sale of substantially all assets. The disclosure statement described a "toggle" mechanism permitting a switch to the sale track if the debtors and required consenting term lenders concluded it would be more value-maximizing.

Bidding procedures. The court approved bidding procedures on June 29, 2023. The procedures authorized a break-up fee of up to 3% of the proposed purchase price for any stalking horse bidder. An initial auction was scheduled for August 7, 2023 but was cancelled after the debtors elected to pursue recapitalization. During the marketing process, the company drew interest from Brookfield and Digital Realty among potential acquirers, with final bids initially expected by August 18, 2023.

Toggle to sale. On November 1, 2023, the debtors filed a notice of sale transaction announcing the election to proceed on the sale track. The buyer was Phoenix Data Center Holdings LLC, an affiliate of Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P., at a purchase price of $775 million in cash, subject to adjustment. The asset purchase agreement was executed the same day. Bid protections were noticed concurrently with the sale transaction filing. Brookfield's acquisition reportedly also included approximately $525 million for related real estate housing seven of Cyxtera's U.S. data centers, with plans to integrate the assets with Brookfield's existing Evoque Data Center Solutions portfolio.

Canadian assets. The court entered an order on November 17, 2023 authorizing Cyxtera Canada to enter into a separate agreement with Cologix related to certain Canadian assets.

Fourth Amended Plan and GUC Trust

The Fourth Amended Joint Plan of Reorganization went through four rounds of amendments before confirmation, approximately 5.5 months after the petition date: the original joint plan was filed on August 15, 2023, followed by an amended plan on September 13, a second amended plan on September 24, a third amended plan on November 2, and the fourth amended plan on November 13, four days before confirmation. The court approved the disclosure statement on September 26, 2023, enabling solicitation of plan votes. The general bar date for filing proofs of claim was set at August 15, 2023, coinciding with the date of the original plan filing.

Unimpaired claims (Classes 1 and 2). Holders of other secured claims (Class 1) and other priority claims (Class 2) were unimpaired under the plan and deemed to accept.

First lien claims (Class 3). Holders of approximately $1.02 billion in first lien claims received their pro rata share of distributable consideration — net sale proceeds from the $775 million purchase price after payment of DIP claims, secured claims, administrative expenses, and other senior obligations. Class 3 voted to accept the plan.

General unsecured claims (Class 4). Unsecured creditors received interests in a GUC Trust funded with $8.65 million in cash — a small fraction of the approximately $307 million in filed unsecured proofs of claim. META Advisors LLC was designated as GUC Trustee. The trust was responsible for resolving approximately 380 filed proofs of claim and approximately 400 scheduled claims. Class 4 voted to accept the plan.

No-recovery classes. One additional impaired class (Class 5) was entitled to no recovery and deemed to reject. Existing equity interests (Class 8) were impaired, cancelled, and extinguished with no recovery for shareholders. The OCC accelerated the expiration of all outstanding Cyxtera options to January 19, 2024 following the cancellation of existing shares on the plan effective date.

Plan administrator. Eugene Davis was designated as Plan Administrator for the post-effective date estate under the confirmation order, operating through PIRINATE Consulting Group, LLC. The Plan Administrator assumed responsibility for winding down the remaining debtors' estates, distributing proceeds, and pursuing or resolving any remaining claims and causes of action.

Releases and exculpation. The plan contained third-party release and exculpation provisions, with an opt-out mechanism provided through a notice of non-voting status form. The U.S. Trustee objected to these provisions on October 31, 2023, arguing the releases were overbroad and non-consensual under 11 U.S.C. section 307 and 28 U.S.C. section 586(a)(3)(B). Several landlords also filed limited objections or reservations of rights regarding contract assumption and plan supplement terms at confirmation, including ACPF Nova Data Center, Nvidia Corporation, and Oracle. At least one limited objection was formally withdrawn prior to the confirmation hearing. The plan was confirmed notwithstanding the U.S. Trustee's objection after additional amendments, and a contract assumption and assignment order was entered on November 20, 2023.

Professional Retentions and Guggenheim's $21.2 Million Fee

Debtors' advisors. Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as lead restructuring counsel, with Cole Schotz P.C. as local co-counsel in New Jersey. Cole Schotz requested fees of approximately $308,420 plus $2,793 in expenses for the period June 4 through November 30, 2023. Guggenheim Securities, LLC served as investment banker and requested total compensation of approximately $21.17 million in fees plus $166,579 in expenses for the period from petition through the plan effective date. Guggenheim's fee structure comprised monthly fees of $175,000 per month over seven months ($1.225 million), a $1.5 million financing fee, and an $18.4 million sale transaction fee tied to the $775 million Brookfield sale. Professional advisors collectively sought more than $23 million in final fee applications.

Other debtors' professionals. AlixPartners, LLP served as financial advisor, and AP Services, LLC provided CRO services through Eric Koza, whose retention was approved by order entered July 19, 2023. Hilco Real Estate, LLC served as real estate consultant with retention approved the same day. Additional debtors' professionals included Deloitte Tax LLP as tax advisor, Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP as special corporate counsel for the independent board, and M3 Advisory Partners, LP as independent financial advisor — each of which filed final fee applications in early 2024.

Committee advisors. The U.S. Trustee appointed the official committee of unsecured creditors on June 21, 2023. Pachulski Stang Ziehl & Jones LLP served as counsel to the committee, requesting fees of approximately $1.147 million plus $10,405 in expenses for the period June 23, 2023 through January 12, 2024. Alvarez & Marsal North America, LLC served as the committee's financial advisor, requesting fees of approximately $1.917 million plus $595 in expenses for the period June 27, 2023 through January 12, 2024.

GUC Trust Administration and Claims Resolution

The plan went effective on January 12, 2024, transitioning the case into a liquidating trust and wind-down phase. The debtor entity was renamed CTI Liquidation Co., Inc. to reflect the post-confirmation posture, its board of directors was dissolved, and all existing equity interests were cancelled with no distribution to shareholders. FINRA issued a notice confirming that all shares of Cyxtera common stock had been cancelled and extinguished as of the effective date. Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, which served as counsel to the ad hoc group of first lien lenders, noted the emergence as a successful completion of the restructuring process following the $775 million asset sale.

The GUC Trust administered by META Advisors LLC has processed multiple rounds of omnibus claim objections since mid-2024. As of early 2026, the GUC Trustee had resolved over half of the approximately 380 filed proofs of claim and approximately 400 scheduled claims through eight rounds of omnibus objections. The eighth omnibus objection, seeking to disallow approximately $256.7 million in intercompany claims, was set for a hearing on March 31, 2026, continuing the claims resolution process that began in August 2024.

The February 26, 2024 omnibus final fee order addressed interim compensation for estate professionals, with separate final fee orders for Kirkland & Ellis and Pachulski entered on March 29, 2024. The Canadian CCAA recognition proceedings closed in March 2024, with Alvarez & Marsal as Information Officer seeking discharge of its duties after the U.S. chapter 11 restructuring and Canadian asset sales concluded.

Key Timeline

Date	Event
Late 2021	Cyxtera begins exploring strategic alternatives
March 27, 2023	Marketing process launched for potential sale or investment
May 4, 2023	RSA executed with ~64% of first lien lenders and consenting sponsors
June 4, 2023	Petition date; chapter 11 filed in D.N.J.
June 6, 2023	First day hearing; interim DIP order entered
June 21, 2023	U.S. Trustee appoints official committee of unsecured creditors
June 29, 2023	Bidding procedures order entered
July 19, 2023	Final DIP order entered; bar date order entered
August 7, 2023	Initial auction date (cancelled; debtors pivot to recapitalization)
August 15, 2023	Joint plan of reorganization and disclosure statement filed; general bar date
September 13, 2023	Amended joint plan filed
September 24, 2023	Second amended joint plan and updated disclosure statement filed
September 26, 2023	Disclosure statement approval order entered
October 31, 2023	U.S. Trustee files plan objection
November 1, 2023	Notice of sale transaction filed; APA with Phoenix Data Center Holdings LLC executed
November 13, 2023	Fourth amended joint plan filed
November 17, 2023	Confirmation order entered; Canada sale order entered
November 20, 2023	Contract assumption and assignment order entered
January 12, 2024	Plan effective date; debtor renamed CTI Liquidation Co., Inc.
February 26, 2024	Omnibus final fee order entered
March 29, 2024	K&E and Pachulski final fee orders entered
August 2024 – Ongoing	GUC Trust omnibus claim objections (multiple rounds)
March 31, 2026	Eighth omnibus objection hearing (scheduled)

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened to Cyxtera Technologies?

Cyxtera Technologies filed chapter 11 on June 4, 2023 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey. After initially pursuing a recapitalization, the company sold substantially all of its data center assets to Phoenix Data Center Holdings LLC, an affiliate of Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P., for $775 million. The plan went effective on January 12, 2024, and the company was renamed CTI Liquidation Co., Inc. for wind-down purposes.

Who bought Cyxtera's data centers?

Phoenix Data Center Holdings LLC, an affiliate of Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P., acquired substantially all of Cyxtera's data center assets for $775 million in cash under an asset purchase agreement executed on November 1, 2023. Brookfield reportedly also paid approximately $525 million for related real estate housing seven of Cyxtera's U.S. data centers, with plans to integrate the assets into its existing Evoque Data Center Solutions portfolio. Cologix separately acquired certain Canadian data center assets.

How much debt did Cyxtera have when it filed?

As of the petition date, Cyxtera had approximately $1.02 billion in total funded debt obligations, including a $774.1 million 2017 first lien term loan, a $97.0 million 2019 first lien term loan, a $98.3 million revolving credit facility, and a $50.5 million bridge facility. The company additionally owed approximately $38.3 million in equipment finance leases.

Who is the claims agent for Cyxtera Technologies?

Kurtzman Carson Consultants LLC serves as the claims and noticing agent. The July 19, 2023 bar date order set August 15, 2023 as the general deadline for filing proofs of claim in the case.

Related coverage: JCPenney's chapter 11 sale to Simon and Brookfield, Nuvo Group's DIP-funded 363 sale after a de-SPAC, Ascena Retail Group's GUC Trust wind-down, and Luminar Technologies' dual-track 363 sale.

Sources

1. confirmed the Fourth Amended Joint Plan /documents/393db470-97bc-48e5-8eac-6c00c9e9b582/
2. 2,300 customers /documents/9c0d61fe-be90-43e1-a9f9-8bcbc11e9459/
3. $654 million in proceeds /documents/8af0e2d2-ef41-46f0-af70-f896c02c415a/
4. DIP motion /documents/0acb113b-3bbf-47ca-a828-4b4d54f2618b/
5. $14 million superpriority term loan facility /documents/8dd9e675-247a-4017-a247-8509ba31e285/
6. Deputy CRO /documents/6003e045-5cc3-4a12-83b6-963a71307a76/
7. interim cash collateral order /documents/eb0f0ccd-3056-4792-ae1a-bde6e0a9ba7e/
8. bidding procedures /documents/7ed30f23-90c9-4450-9915-9ca0dba8ff5c/
9. notice of sale transaction /documents/8c5c1f62-3134-486c-bec6-cda88230f01c/
10. Bid protections /documents/7bf9402f-4244-4c63-b6b1-d20c6cb14976/
11. order on November 17, 2023 /documents/7d8cadc8-e76a-406e-87ff-6400b2be6139/
12. disclosure statement /documents/cede159c-bd78-4e8a-94f0-9ed53711e668/
13. U.S. Trustee objected /documents/0db6c1a5-6c85-40ef-bcc3-8c20969be693/
14. fees of approximately $308,420 plus $2,793 in expenses /documents/9417c924-85fe-4ce2-b0ac-5547b9e6a828/
15. Guggenheim Securities, LLC /documents/07269009-6ccd-49c4-b67f-04b481dc9ce7/
16. final fee applications /documents/b24d1c29-84a6-40d3-949d-45f8ee142093/
17. fees of approximately $1.147 million plus $10,405 in expenses /documents/c1f5513f-50e5-4ea4-8298-3f73d4b0fd85/
18. fees of approximately $1.917 million plus $595 in expenses /documents/0146584b-313f-47c9-bfa3-b1bb52376b60/
19. went effective on January 12, 2024 /documents/8d84f7d4-7e14-4c37-9130-55cd9d5c3e0a/
20. eighth omnibus objection /documents/c76cbcd6-ee01-41d6-a8d5-608a01dc2212/
21. omnibus final fee order /documents/46423ad2-0c50-4942-b897-520a2624f04d/
22. Kurtzman Carson Consultants LLC /documents/8dca5e14-f4b3-4687-9de8-9a37dfedea7f/
23. filed chapter 11 https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2023-09-29/junk-rated-companies-are-facing-a-wall-of-debt-maturities
24. extended certain debt maturities https://news.bloomberglaw.com/bankruptcy-law/data-center-firm-cyxtera-extends-debt-maturity-may-face-chapter-11
25. skipped an interest payment https://news.bloomberglaw.com/bankruptcy-law/data-center-firm-cyxtera-skips-interest-payment-amid-debt-talks
26. launched on March 27, 2023 https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-10-23/bankrupt-cyxtera-looks-to-sell-data-centers-to-brookfield
27. announced https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230604005093/en/
28. mega corporate restructurings https://njbiz.com/nj-bankruptcy-court-sees-2023-uptick-in-mega-corporate-restructurings/
29. drew interest from Brookfield and Digital Realty https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-08-11/bankrupt-cyxtera-draws-interest-from-brookfield-digital-realty
30. $775 million in cash https://www.datacenterknowledge.com/deals/brookfield-to-buy-cyxtera-data-center-properties-in-775m-deal
31. $525 million for related real estate https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/article-brookfield-buys-cyxtera-technologies-and-related-real-estate-for-us13/
32. extinguished with no recovery https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1794905/000179490524000006/cyxt-20240112.htm
33. accelerated the expiration https://infomemo.theocc.com/infomemos?number=53948
34. sought more than $23 million https://www.law360.com/bankruptcy-authority/articles/1790665/kirkland-other-firms-seek-23m-fees-in-cyxtera-ch-11
35. FINRA issued a notice https://www.finra.org/sites/default/files/2024-01/UPC-02-2024-CYXTQ.pdf
36. noted the emergence https://www.davispolk.com/experience/cyxtera-technologies-emerges-chapter-11
37. seeking discharge of its duties https://www.alvarezandmarsal.com/sites/default/files/canada/Seventh%20Information%20Officer%20Report%20-%20Cyxtera%20-%20March%2022%2C%202024.pdf