Data centre start-up Firmus withdrew its 43.7 billion dollar initial public offering on October 9, 2026, after institutional investors baulked at the proposed share price and terms. The abandoned ASX listing would have been the largest in Australia since Telstra in 1997.
The rise and fall of Firmus moved at a blistering pace. On Monday of that week, the company was poised for one of Australia’s biggest ever stock market listings, promising investors exposure to liquid-cooled data centres packed with Nvidia microchips. By Friday morning, after a chaotic week of behind-the-scenes scramble, the float was dead. Firmus pulled its application to list on the Australian Securities Exchange, citing market volatility and conditions that failed to reflect the strength of its business.
How Firmus Built Up to a Multi-Billion Dollar Valuation
Founded in 2019 by Oliver Curtis, his cousin Tim Rosenfield, and Jonathan Levee, Firmus initially operated as a bitcoin mining business. The Singapore-headquartered start-up constructs modular AI factories designed to house Nvidia chips, renting out computing power to tech giants such as Meta and OpenAI. Its private valuation climbed steeply in a short window. A private funding round in November 2025 valued the company at about 6 billion Australian dollars. Another round in August 2026 pushed that figure past 10.5 billion US dollars, or roughly 15 billion Australian dollars. Then the company sought a public valuation of 43.7 billion Australian dollars.
That ambition drew backing from prominent names. Chipmaker Nvidia, US private equity giant Blackstone, and Coatue Management provided early capital. Yet beneath the enthusiasm, warning signs began to accumulate. Analysts working for the IPO’s joint lead managers estimated the company carried about 30 billion US dollars in debt.
Neither co-chief executive came from the technology industry. Of the 912 megawatts of computing capacity the company signed customers up for, just 46 megawatts were running, amounting to about 5 per cent. Josh Gilbert, who analyses Asia-Pacific markets for investing platform eToro, noted that investors were not prepared to pay a sky-high price upfront for capacity that remained largely on the drawing board. MST senior analyst Hasan Tevfik also highlighted a misalignment between the company’s bankers and the realities of the Australian funds-management industry.
Misalignment and Index Rules Derail Planned October Debut
The road to the planned October 23 debut turned rocky early in the week. On Tuesday, CDC founder Greg Boorer revealed that CDC’s partnership with Firmus had ended because the two sides were misaligned. Local investors involved in the ecosystem included Regal, WAM Active, Paradice, and Ellerston Capital. Meanwhile, index provider S&P Dow Jones showed reluctance to relax its index-entry rules, presenting an additional impediment.
The board therefore concluded that proceeding with the offer was not in the best interests of the company and its shareholders.
Firmus spokesman, via Sydney Morning Herald
Morgan Stanley had previously suggested a valuation between 65 billion US dollars and 90 billion US dollars.
Wider Fallout for Maas Group and Market Sentiment
The abandoned listing sent immediate ripples through the Australian market. Maas Group Holdings, which held a 3.2 per cent stake in Firmus, saw its shares plunge more than 20 per cent on Thursday as doubts about the float mounted. Maas Group shares fell as low as $4.47 in early trade before recovering to close 24.7 per cent lower at $4.81. Macquarie analysts had valued Maas Group’s stake at 4 dollars per share based on the 43.7 billion dollar valuation, but marked it down to 1.42 dollars to reflect Firmus’ earlier private funding round, while increasing Maas Group’s price target from $6.75 to $8.15. Maas Group also announced the formal completion of the divestment of its construction materials business for $1.61 billion.
Financial analysts viewed the collapse as a sobering moment for artificial intelligence investments. Jun Bei Liu, co-founder of fund manager Ten Cap, observed that the episode highlighted growing scrutiny over capital requirements and execution risks.
I think the Firmus situation represents an important reality check for the AI investment boom, but I wouldn’t interpret it as the beginning of the end of the AI trade.
Jun Bei Liu, Ten Cap
Firmus stated that it will pursue capital from private markets and evaluate alternative public and private options to fund its ongoing projects.