Firmus IPO

Hi Paul,

This is an excellent question, and one that’s generating significant debate across Australian retail and institutional investors at the moment.

Founded in Sydney in 2019, Firmus initially focused on bitcoin mining before pivoting into AI infrastructure as demand surged. Now based in Singapore, the company is developing what it calls “green AI factories” — energy-efficient data centres designed for intensive AI workloads, with a focus on performance and sustainability. Its key differentiator is a proprietary cooling system, claiming ~33% lower energy use and ~99% less water consumption. The flagship project is Project Southgate — a ~$4.5bn AI data centre campus in Launceston, Tasmania.

The numbers here are enormous, even by AI standards. Firmus has raised ~$505m at a ~$5.5bn valuation ahead of a planned IPO mid-year, where it’s targeting a further ~$2bn. This marks the third raise in six months, taking total equity raised over that period to ~$1.35bn. The company is now reportedly aiming for a ~$12bn valuation at listing — a ~50% step-up. Stepping back, the ambition is even more striking: Firmus is targeting ~$73bn in total infrastructure investment — more than 3x AWS’s current data centre commitment in Australia.

However, there are a few read flags, including:

• No Escrow a large structural Warning, Pre-Revenue, Pre-Construction reality, The Nvidia dependency, no transparent customer contracts and its valuation has gone vertical in months.
• We hear institutional demand has not been great, so they will rely on retail money to get the deal done. Not a great sign.

At this stage we feel comfortable adopting a wait and see approach.