Equinix completes $740m data centre buyout

Equinix has completed its US$683.4 million ($740.1 million) acquisition of Switch and Data in a move that significantly expands the company's presence in the US and Canada.

The acquisition was announced back in October.

The price tag consisted US$134 million in cash with the rest to be made up in the issuance of Equinix common stock.

The buy adds 92,903 square metres gross in data centre floor space to Equinix spread across 34 data centres located in 22 markets.

"The transaction allows Equinix to immediately expand into new strategic metropolitan areas, including Atlanta, Denver, Miami, Seattle and Toronto, as well as provides a platform for the future expansion of the former Switch and Data assets," the company said in a statement.

"In addition, the deal expands the number of network service providers available from 410 to more than 575 providers for Internet, peering, Ethernet and wide area network (WAN) services within Equinix IBX data centres."

The company was expected to hold a conference call later this week to present a consolidated outlook on the newly-merged entity.