Global Switch is being looked at as an acquisition target by a number of investment and data center firms.

Bloomberg reports Blackstone Inc. and KKR are among potential suitors weighing bids for data center firm Global Switch Holdings Ltd.

DigitalBridge Group, Digital Realty Trust Inc., and Equinix Inc. have all also reportedly expressed preliminary interest in the firm.

Update: Brookfield Asset Management, which had reportedly been interested in CyrusOne before it was acquired by KKR and GIP, is another party also rumored to be interested in potentially acquiring the company.

Update: In a recent statement, Global Switch said it "notes the recent media speculation" and said its shareholders have informed the company that they "continue to evaluate their options to potentially introduce international strategic investors to the company and create liquidity for their stakes at the same time."

"This evaluation is progressing but no formal transaction process has yet commenced."

Founded in 1998, London-based Global Switch operates 13 facilities across Europe, Australia, and Asia. Chinese steel giant Jiangsu Shagang Group took control of data center company Global Switch over a three-year period beginning in 2016.

Since the Chinese investors began their involvement, the Australian Government has been on a migration journey, moving data and applications out of the company’s data center in Ultimo, Sydney, and into facilities owned by other providers over national security concerns.

This January, the Australian Securities commission said it would leave and move to Canberra Data Centres, joining many of the other fleeing agencies including Home Affairs, the Australian Tax Office, and the Defence Department.

The Australian Government set a new target date of July 2022 for federal agencies to leave Global Switch’s Sydney data center on grounds of national security, having missed the previous goal of September 2020.

Bloomberg first reported Global Switch was exploring a sale in January after an abandoned IPO attempt in 2019.

If a deal does happen, it would be one of a number of large data center acquisitions in 2021. QTS, CoreSite, and CyrusOne have all been acquired – by Blackstone, American Tower, and KKR/GIP respectively – for a combined $36 billion.