Shamus M. Crosby

Simpson Thacher represented DigitalBridge Group, Inc. (NYSE: DBRG) on the formation of Articul8 Ai, Inc., an independent company offering enterprise customers a full-stack, vertically-optimized and secure generative artificial intelligence software platform. The platform delivers AI capabilities that keep customer data, training and inference within the enterprise security perimeter. The platform also provides customers the choice of cloud, on-prem or hybrid deployment. The transaction closed on December 30, 2023.~~Articul8 was created with intellectual property (IP) and technology developed at Intel, and Intel and DigitalBridge will remain strategically aligned on go-to-market opportunities and collaborate on driving GenAI adoption in the enterprise.~~DigitalBridge’s investment was made in connection with its venture initiative, and it served as lead investor of Articul8. In addition, Intel, along with a syndicate of established venture investors, including Fin Capital, Mindset Ventures, Communitas Capital, GiantLeap Capital, GS Futures and Zain Group, has taken an equity stake in the company.~~The Simpson Thacher team included Gabriel Silva and Shamus Crosby (M&A); Parker Kelsey, Nick Brown, Tarek Hussamy and Sung Won Choi (Funds); Lori Lesser and Sarika Pandrangi (IP); and Andrew Purcell and Brian Mendick (Tax).

Aug 1

1 min

Simpson Thacher represented DigitalBridge Group, Inc. (NYSE: DBRG) and its portfolio company Scala Data Centers in connection with a $500 million structured financing round in Scala Data Centers. The investment includes US$250 million from Coatue Tactical Solutions and US$250 million from the Investment Management Corporation of Ontario - IMCO. The investments are intended to accelerate and extend Scala’s strategic capabilities to partner with global hyperscalers in meeting unprecedented cloud and AI demand. The structured financing was subsequently upsized by an additional US$25 million.~~Scala Data Centers is a leading global provider of hyperscale data center campuses in Latin America. Scala powers, cools, protects and connects the technology of the world’s well-known hyperscalers, cloud providers and large enterprises.~~DigitalBridge is a leading global alternative asset manager dedicated to investing in digital infrastructure. With a heritage of over 25 years investing in and operating businesses across the digital ecosystem, including cell towers, data centers, fiber, small cells and edge infrastructure, the DigitalBridge team manages over $80 billion of infrastructure assets on behalf of its limited partners and shareholders.~~The Simpson Thacher team includes Gabriel Silva, Shamus Crosby, Gabriela Astolphi, Isabella Correa and Larissa Gebrim (M&A); Andrew Purcell and Brian Mendick (Tax); Peter Guryan and Jamie Logie (Antitrust); Lori Lesser and Ron Ben-Yehuda (IP and Privacy).

Sep 24

1 min

Simpson Thacher represented global investment firm KKR in its $50 billion strategic partnership with Energy Capital Partners (“ECP”), the largest private owner of power generation and renewables in the U.S. The collaboration aims to accelerate the development of data center and power generation and transmission infrastructure for the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence and cloud computing globally. This strategic partnership combines KKR’s deep expertise in digital infrastructure, power, and the energy value chain with ECP’s premier energy transition platform in electrification and power and renewable generation.~~The strategic partnership is designed to deliver scaled data center and power solutions for hyperscalers and other market participants to support their infrastructure needs across geographies to drive model training, tuning, and inferencing at scale. KKR and ECP plan to engage with industry leaders including utilities, power and data center developers, and independent power producers to accelerate the delivery of data center campuses required by hyperscalers. KKR is funding the strategic partnership from existing infrastructure and real estate strategies and insurance accounts managed by KKR. ECP is funding the strategic partnership from existing and future infrastructure capital pools.~~The Simpson Thacher team assisting on the transaction was led by Breen Haire and Shamus Crosby.

Oct 31

1 min

Netherlands-based Refresco said Friday it has agreed to acquire Minnesota-based SunOpta in an all-cash deal valuing the U.S.-listed company at $6.50 per share, or roughly $768 million, in a deal steered by at least five law firms. Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP and Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP are SunOpta's legal counsel. Wildeboer Dellelce LLP is representing a SunOpta special committee. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP and Bennett Jones LLP are legal advisers to Refresco. The transaction, approved unanimously by both companies' boards, will be completed through a court-approved plan of arrangement under Canada's Business Corporations Act and is expected to close in the second quarter of 2026, subject to regulatory, court and shareholder approvals, according to a deal announcement. Upon closing, SunOpta, which is incorporated in Canada, will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Refresco and its shares will no longer trade publicly. SunOpta provides supply chain solutions for beverages, broths and snacks across North America, while Refresco is a global beverage solutions provider with operations in North America, Europe and Australia. Lazard is advising SunOpta and provided a fairness opinion to its board. Scotiabank is advising SunOpta's special committee and also delivered a fairness opinion. Refresco is being advised by Morgan Stanley. Financing for the acquisition has been committed by Morgan Stanley Senior Funding and KKR Capital Markets. The Skadden team is led by partners Daniel Luks and Sean Doyle. The Simpson Thacher team is led by partners Breen Haire, Shamus Crosby and David Bumgardner. Additional deal team information was not available by press time.

Feb 6

1 min

Simpson Thacher is representing DigitalBridge Group, Inc. (NYSE: DBRG) in connection with an initial $6.4 billion equity investment round in Vantage Data Centers, led by investment vehicles managed by DigitalBridge and Silver Lake. The investments are intended to accelerate and extend Vantage’s strategic capabilities to partner with global hyperscalers in meeting unprecedented cloud and AI demand. The capital raise was significantly oversubscribed and upsized by $2.8 billion upon the close with participation from multiple global investors, bringing the completed investment to $9.2 billion.~~Vantage Data Centers is a leading global provider of hyperscale data center campuses, developing and operating across five continents in North America, EMEA and Asia Pacific. Vantage powers, cools, protects and connects the technology of the world’s well-known hyperscalers, cloud providers and large enterprises.~~DigitalBridge is a leading global alternative asset manager dedicated to investing in digital infrastructure. With a heritage of over 25 years investing in and operating businesses across the digital ecosystem, including cell towers, data centers, fiber, small cells and edge infrastructure, the DigitalBridge team manages $75 billion of infrastructure assets on behalf of its limited partners and shareholders.~~The Simpson Thacher team includes Gabriel Silva, Shamus Crosby, Mark Kunzman, Gabriela Astolphi, Jonathan Schwartz, Lawrence Page and E.R. Rolwes (M&A); David Rubinsky and Megan Arrowsmith (Executive Compensation and Employee Benefits); Andrew Purcell, Brian Mendick and Emma Wang (Tax); and Steven DeLott (Insurance).

Sep 1

1 min