EQT Infrastructure IV is set to acquire inexio Beteiligungs GmbH & Co. KGaA from Warburg Pincus, Deutsche Beteiligungs AG, the founders, and several other minority shareholders. 

Inexio was founded in 2007 by David Zimmer and since then has been investing heavily in the fiber optic infrastructure in rural and small-town areas in south-western and southern Germany. Today, the company offers fiber-optic high-speed Internet access to more than 300,000 homes and 6,000 businesses. Inexio's unique and scalable network of more than 10,000 kilometers of fiber infrastructure provides a strong platform for further growth. 

The inexio management team, led by Founder David Zimmer, plans to continue the company's rapid growth by expanding its broad fiber-to-the-home ("FTTH") offerings. FTTH is the fastest, most reliable and future-proof Internet connection on the market, and the only technology that will be able to meet the fast-growing demands for bandwidth in the future.

Germany is one of the most attractive growth markets for glass fiber in Europe. Compared to other countries such as Sweden or the Netherlands, Germany is lagging behind in its expansion path. inexio wants to close this supply gap and provide two million German households in rural and suburban areas with FTTH by 2030. Thus inexio supports the future offensive "Gigabit Germany" of the Federal Government and the project to offer universal Gigabit Internet. 

The transaction is still subject to antitrust clearance and is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2019. Clifford Chance acted as legal advisor to EQT. 

Including this transaction, EQT Infrastructure IV is expected to have invested a total of 50-55% of the fund's total assets (including signed and completed investments, on-going bids, if applicable, and exclusive expected syndication).