{"id":230286,"date":"2025-09-16T02:48:18","date_gmt":"2025-09-16T02:48:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/230286\/"},"modified":"2025-09-16T02:48:18","modified_gmt":"2025-09-16T02:48:18","slug":"dallas-gigabit-fiber-gets-majority-investment-from-funds-managed-by-nyc-based-blue-owl-dallas-innovates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/230286\/","title":{"rendered":"Dallas\u2019 Gigabit Fiber Gets Majority Investment from Funds Managed by NYC-Based Blue Owl \u00bb Dallas Innovates"},"content":{"rendered":"

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[Illustration: bluebay\/Shutterstock]<\/p>\n

Dallas-based Gigabit Fiber has received a majority investment from a fund managed by Blue Owl Capital\u2019s Digital Infrastructure strategy. The deal includes a controlling stake in the company\u2019s core fiber business, positioning it for expanded growth as demand for AI and cloud infrastructure accelerates.<\/strong><\/p>\n

While terms were not disclosed, Gigabit Fiber will continue to operate independently, according to a joint announcement. CEO Tom Spackman will remain in his role and is the company\u2019s largest individual equity holder.<\/p>\n

In a LinkedIn post today, Spackman reflected on the milestone: \u201cWe closed the first volume of our story\u201425 years in the making.\u201d He said Blue Owl acquired a 51% stake in Gigabit Fiber\u2019s enterprise, carrier, and hyperscale fiber business. It bought into what he described as \u201ca world-class network methodically constructed over the past quarter century.\u201d<\/p>\n

Legacy partners, he noted, \u201care still believers and will own 49% of the equity,\u201d with Spackman remaining \u201cthe single largest individual partner.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are all aligned and pushing together on the same side of the rock,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Spackman added that the company\u2019s real estate holdings, data center developments in South Dallas and El Paso, and its residential and SME business in South Texas were not included in the transaction. Those assets, along with his group\u2019s retained stake in Gigabit Fiber, will be held under a new entity called GF Distributions.<\/p>\n

Spackman, who became CEO in 2020, described the investment as a continuation of a 25-year partnership with Blue Owl.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are excited to welcome Blue Owl into our 25-year partnership,\u201d he said, adding that the firm\u2019s capital and expertise will help \u201caccelerate our growth and expand our network reach.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said Gigabit Fiber is deploying high-density conduit systems in ring configurations across its metro markets\u2014networks designed to meet the growing infrastructure demands of artificial intelligence.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese are networks that serve as the connective tissue enabling our customers to manufacture artificial intelligence at scale,\u201d Spackman said.<\/p>\n

Targeting hyperscalers across the Southwest<\/p>\n

Gigabit Fiber, based in the former Federal Reserve Building on Akard St. in downtown Dallas, currently owns and operates approximately 500 route miles of conduit, with fiber networks linking more than 50 data centers, according to the announcement.\u00a0 The company focuses on data center\u2013to\u2013data center connectivity across Texas, with a footprint in Dallas\u2013Fort Worth, Austin, El Paso, San Antonio, and South Texas.<\/p>\n

With Blue Owl\u2019s backing, the company plans to expand significantly across Texas and New Mexico, aiming to become the provider of choice for hyperscale customers in the region.<\/p>\n

Blue Owl is a New York\u2013based alternative asset manager with more than $284 billion in assets under management as of June 30. The firm invests across credit, real assets, and GP strategic capital, including fiber infrastructure through platforms such as Dark Fiber & Infrastructure and South Reach Networks.<\/p>\n

Gigabit Fiber said it will continue to operate independently of Blue Owl\u2019s other fiber holdings.<\/p>\n

Leadership update<\/p>\n

Chris Degelia, who previously served as general manager, has been appointed chief revenue officer. In a statement, Degelia said the company is entering a new phase of growth.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith [Blue Owl\u2019s] support, we will accelerate expansion in South Dallas by adding high-capacity conduit routes and building campus-to-campus fiber connections between data centers,\u201d he said. \u201cOur goal is to create a seamless solution that enables end users and operators.\u201d<\/p>\n

As part of the transaction, Gigabit Fiber\u2019s board has added three new directors: Chris Jensen\u2014managing director of digital infrastructure at Blue Owl and a longtime business partner of Spackman\u2014joins the board alongside Matt A\u2019Hearn and Brian Cox.<\/p>\n

\u201cI prefer to think of this not so much as giving up majority control,\u201d Spackman said, \u201cbut rather gaining three outstanding new directors.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018A region of incredible interest\u201d<\/p>\n

Chris Jensen, managing director of digital infrastructure at Blue Owl, said the Southwest is becoming a priority region for the firm\u2019s hyperscale clients.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are incredibly excited to collaborate with Gigabit Fiber and be a part of its story as it enters its next chapter of growth,\u201d Jensen said. \u201cTexas and New Mexico continue to be a region of incredible interest.\u201d<\/p>\n

Advisors and market outlook<\/p>\n

Bank Street Group LLC served as exclusive financial advisor, and Polsinelli PC served as legal advisor to Gigabit Fiber. Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP served as legal advisor to Blue Owl.<\/p>\n

In a LinkedIn post, Bank Street pointed to continued momentum in the Dallas data center market, projecting capacity to grow from 600 megawatts today to 1.5 gigawatts by 2030.<\/p>\n

\u201cAI and cloud demand by hyperscale customers is driving extraordinary data center growth,\u201d the firm said.<\/p>\n

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