Houlihan Lokey Advises Intelligent Fiber Network

Houlihan Lokey is pleased to announce that Intelligent Fiber Network (IFN) has been acquired by Zayo Group Holdings, Inc. (Zayo). IFN, which provides fiber-based connectivity solutions to over 400 customers, operates a 5,000-route-mile network across multiple markets in Indiana, including Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, Columbus, Terre Haute, and South Bend. The acquisition of IFN brings Zayo a unique and dense regional fiber network and dedicated local team that will aid the company’s efforts to accelerate growth. The transaction closed on June 1, 2021.

IFN is owned by 20 Indiana local exchange telephone companies and one rural electric cooperative. IFN provides high-speed, fiber-optic backbone capabilities to these owners as well as to other telecommunications providers and business direct customers, including hospitals, schools, and government facilities. IFN’s network consists of more than 5,000 route miles of fiber-optic line across more than 60 Indiana counties. IFN offers commercial service in Indiana and throughout the U.S. via a network of national partners.

Zayo provides mission-critical bandwidth to the world’s most impactful companies, fueling the innovations that are transforming our society. Zayo’s 126,000-mile network in North America and Europe includes extensive metro connectivity to thousands of buildings and data centers. Zayo’s communications infrastructure solutions include dark fiber, private data networks, wavelengths, Ethernet, dedicated internet access, and data center connectivity solutions. Zayo owns and operates a Tier 1 IP backbone and, through its CloudLink service, provides low-latency private connectivity that attaches enterprises to their public cloud environments.

Houlihan Lokey worked as a sellside financial advisor to IFN and assisted in marketing, structuring, and negotiating the transaction on behalf of the company. This deal further demonstrates Houlihan Lokey’s leading position in advising premier fiber-based, broadband companies in the U.S.