Nvidia-backed cloud computing company Firmus Grid withdrew its listing application from the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) on October 9, 2026. That canceled an initial public offering (IPO) that would have raised about $5 billion and valued the company at more than $30 billion — A$43.7 billion. Had it proceeded, the listing would have been the country's largest stock market debut in nearly 30 years and the second-largest listing in Australian history: the only larger case was the privatization of Telstra in 1997. The Wall Street Journal reported the news.
Official Statement and the Listing's Scale
The company cited market conditions as the reason for withdrawing the application. In an official statement quoted by the publication, it said:
"recent market volatility and prevailing market conditions"
Reuters reported that Firmus had sought a valuation of about $30.6 billion in the listing. According to the agency, the company will now turn to private capital markets instead of the public one and will consider alternative listing options in the future.
The scale of the planned listing was unusual for the Australian market: a targeted raise of about $5 billion and a market capitalization above $30 billion would have made it the country's largest stock market debut in nearly 30 years. For comparison: the only larger listing in Australian history was the privatization of Telstra in 1997. Reports appeared in both sources — The Wall Street Journal and Reuters — on October 9. In currency terms, the planned valuation stood at A$43.7 billion — a figure that also shows the listing's unprecedented scale for the local market.
Questions Around the Valuation
Analysts were skeptical of the announced high valuation given the company's relatively small operational scale. Firmus currently operates only 2 data centers; another 5 centers in Australia, Malaysia, and Indonesia are under construction. Bell Potter analyst Chris Savage noted execution risk on those five planned facilities, including potential construction delays. Doubts centered on two points: first, the small size of the operating infrastructure — just two centers; second, the nearly threefold increase in valuation in two months.
The pace of valuation growth was also in focus: in a $2 billion equity round conducted in August 2026 with Blackstone and Coatue, the company was valued at $10.5 billion. So the IPO planned in early October valued Firmus nearly three times higher — more than $30 billion — just two months later. According to the WSJ, the company currently has access to a $10 billion debt facility led by Blackstone — twice the planned $5 billion raise. The spread of the five new centers across Australia, Malaysia, and Indonesia shows the project's geographic scale: the company plans to build five more centers alongside its two operating ones.
A Four-Way Tie With Nvidia
Firmus is a Sydney-based company with a seven-year history. Its business model is based on selling ready AI computing capacity directly to large technology companies; OpenAI and Meta were mentioned among its clients. Ready computing capacity means a client can run AI workloads without building its own infrastructure — and that is exactly the service Firmus offers large technology companies. Nvidia is connected to the company in four ways: it is simultaneously a customer of Firmus's services, a commercial partner, an equipment supplier, and a direct shareholder. In other words, Nvidia supplies equipment to Firmus on the one hand, uses its computing services on the other, participates as a commercial partner, and directly owns a stake in the company — showing how deep the relationship between the two companies runs.
Brief Timeline and Next Steps
Events unfolded as follows: in August 2026, a $2 billion round with Blackstone and Coatue valued the company at $10.5 billion; on October 9, 2026, the ASX application was withdrawn, with market conditions cited as the official reason. According to Reuters, instead of the public listing plan, Firmus will now switch to raising capital through private markets and will consider alternative listing options in the future.
