Firmus investor Maas falls after AI data-centre operator pulls blockbuster IPO plan
Reuters2026/10/09 05:32Maas shares fall as much as 10.7% to a five-month low Firmus withdraws listing application, cites market volatility Maas owns 3.2% of Firmus and supplies its AI factory projects Unit holds A$1.1 bln in Firmus work orders through fiscal 2027 Rewrites throughout Oct 9 (Reuters) - Shares of Australian construction services provider Maas Group MGH.AX fell nearly 11% on Friday after Nvidia NVDA.O-backed Firmus withdrew its $5 billion IPO, raising concerns over the value of Maas's 3.2% stake in the data-centre operator. The stock fell as much as 10.7% to a five-month low of A$4.43 after trading resumed from a halt pending an update on Firmus's IPO and Maas's contracts with the operator. Maas is both an investor in Firmus and a supplier through its JLE Group electrical infrastructure unit. Earlier in the day, Firmus withdrew its listing application, citing market volatility and conditions that it said would not fairly reflect its business strength and long-term growth prospects. The company, which counts OpenAI as an anchor customer, said it would seek private funding and explore alternative public and private capital-raising options. FIRMUS CONTRACTS REMAIN IN PLACE JLE continues to deliver modular Power Cubes and related electrical scope for Firmus AI factory projects, with work orders worth about A$1.1 billion ($767.91 million) across fiscal 2026 and 2027, Maas said on Friday. Maas said it had received A$373 million in payments under the contracts and expects the work to be completed by the end of 2027. The stock slumped 22.4% on Thursday after a report that Firmus was reconsidering the deal's terms, wiping about A$517 million from Maas's market value. It has fallen more than 31% so far this week, on track for its worst week on record. Firmus had planned to price its shares at A$11 each, valuing the company's equity at about A$30.6 billion, nearly triple its A$10.5 billion valuation from an August funding round. The withdrawn float, which would have been Australia's second-largest IPO on record, underscores investor
Rewrites throughout
Oct 9 (Reuters) - Shares of Australian construction services provider Maas Group MGH.AX fell nearly 11% on Friday after Nvidia NVDA.O-backed Firmus withdrew its $5 billion IPO, raising concerns over the value of Maas's 3.2% stake in the data-centre operator.
The stock fell as much as 10.7% to a five-month low of A$4.43 after trading resumed from a halt pending an update on Firmus's IPO and Maas's contracts with the operator.
Maas is both an investor in Firmus and a supplier through its JLE Group electrical infrastructure unit.
Earlier in the day, Firmus withdrew its listing application, citing market volatility and conditions that it said would not fairly reflect its business strength and long-term growth prospects.
The company, which counts OpenAI as an anchor customer, said it would seek private funding and explore alternative public and private capital-raising options.
FIRMUS CONTRACTS REMAIN IN PLACE
JLE continues to deliver modular Power Cubes and related electrical scope for Firmus AI factory projects, with work orders worth about A$1.1 billion ($767.91 million) across fiscal 2026 and 2027, Maas said on Friday.
Maas said it had received A$373 million in payments under the contracts and expects the work to be completed by the end of 2027.
The stock slumped 22.4% on Thursday after a report that Firmus was reconsidering the deal's terms, wiping about A$517 million from Maas's market value. It has fallen more than 31% so far this week, on track for its worst week on record.
Firmus had planned to price its shares at A$11 each, valuing the company's equity at about A$30.6 billion, nearly triple its A$10.5 billion valuation from an August funding round.
The withdrawn float, which would have been Australia's second-largest IPO on record, underscores investor caution toward highly valued AI infrastructure firms with aggressive expansion plans and significant funding requirements.
($1 = 1.4325 Australian dollars)
(Reporting by Rajasik Mukherjee and Kumar Tanishk in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
Disclaimer: The content of this article solely reflects the author's opinion and does not represent the platform in any capacity. This article is not intended to serve as a reference for making investment decisions.
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