Grain Management Acquires Quintillion to Accelerate Broadband Expansion in Alaska
The partnership will continue bridging the digital divide throughout Alaska and beyond
ANCHORAGE, AK (April 3, 2023)
The executive team of QSH Parent Holdco LLC (“Quintillion” or the “Company”), the leading provider of fiber-based connectivity in the American Arctic, announced today the acquisition of the Company by Washington, D.C.-based private investment firm Grain Management, LLC (“Grain” or the “Firm”).
Founded in 2015, Quintillion constructed and operates a fiber-optic cable network that provides high speed broadband services to communities in Northern Alaska providing connectivity to schools, hospitals, businesses, and consumers.
“As increasingly more people and businesses depend upon broadband services for school, work, and health care, too many Alaskans are still being left behind. Those who live in unserved and underserved communities deserve the same access to affordable broadband as their urban neighbors enjoy,” said George Tronsrue III, Quintillion Chief Executive Officer. “Our partnership with Grain will expedite closing the digital divide and accelerate the pace with which we connect more Alaskans to each other and to the rest of the world. With this partnership, Quintillion will continue to work with our country’s defense agencies to enhance our national defense and security in this critical part of the globe.”
Quintillion’s system currently has the capacity to deliver gigabit and terabit bandwidth services on a 1,200-mile subsea and 500-mile terrestrial fiber optic network.
“The Grain team is passionate about the globally transformative power of broadband technology and after years of following Quintillion we think this is a great fit for our investment strategy,” said Chad Crank, Managing Director at Grain. “We are excited to partner with management to accelerate the company’s growth while continuing to support the critical connectivity needs of communities in Alaska and beyond.”
Bank Street Group LLC served as exclusive financial advisor to Quintillion and Cooper Investment Partners, and Alston & Bird LLP and Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, LLP served as legal advisors to Grain and Quintillion, respectively. Financial terms of the transaction have not been disclosed.
About Quintillion
Quintillion is a private global communications corporation located in Anchorage, Alaska. Quintillion built, owns and operates a subsea and terrestrial high speed fiber optic network that spans the Alaskan Arctic and connects to the Lower 48. The planned three-phase Quintillion subsea cable system will ultimately connect Asia to the American Pacific Northwest, and to Western Europe via the Northwest Passage and through the Alaskan and Canadian Arctic.
About Grain Management
Grain Management, LLC is a leading private investment firm that focuses on communications infrastructure and technology companies that connect the world to the information economy. Founded in 2007, the Firm invests exclusively in the global broadband industry, employing a rigorous, data-based process buoyed by deep sector expertise to identify investment opportunities in key areas of communications, including fiber networks, wireless spectrum, cell towers, infrastructure services, and managed services. For more information visit www.graingp.com.
Contacts:
Grain Public Relations
