Diamond Communications, an independent tower company in the U.S., and Sculptor Capital Management (formerly known as Och-Ziff), investing out of a Sculptor Real Estate fund, today announced an agreement with Melody Capital Management to acquire Melody Wireless Infrastructure, which owns a portfolio of 2.3k tower sites. Diamond Communications and Sculptor’s purchase price for Melody Wireless is $1.625bn, with the transaction closing in June 2021.
Melody Wireless’ sites include a combination of ground-based towers, rooftop sites, and ground leases under towers located throughout the U.S. With the Melody Wireless Infrastructure acquisition, Diamond Communications significantly enhances its U.S. footprint of tower sites. In turn, the deal positions Diamond Communications as the second-largest privately-held tower company in the U.S., behind Vertical Bridge.
Diamond Communications – Overview
Diamond Communications was founded in 2006 by Sculptor Real Estate and has since added the John Hancock Infrastructure Fund as an investor. Prior to today’s announcement with Melody Wireless, Diamond owned or managed over 2.0k wireless communication sites in the United States.
Additionally, Diamond Communications manages over 290k properties and structures in the U.S. For example, the company has an agreement to market and manage wireless attachment placement opportunities on Outfront Media’s billboard displays.
Melody Wireless Infrastructure – History
Melody Wireless Infrastructure has grown with the backing of Melody Capital Management through a combination of acquisitions and build-to-suit agreements. Firstly, in January 2015, Melody acquired 908 wireless infrastructure locations from Wireless Capital Partners. Secondly, in July 2016, the company acquired 760+ wireless infrastructure assets from Unison Site Management.
Sculptor Real Estate – Overview
Sculptor Real Estate (formerly Och-Ziff) was founded by Steve Orbuch in 2003 to invest in real estate assets across North America and Europe. Since inception, Sculptor Real Estate has invested in over $14.6bn of real estate assets across 25 different real estate-related asset classes. Notably, for Sculptor Real Estate, the investment in Melody Wireless would fall into the category of real estate-related assets.
Transaction Advisors – Diamond Communications and Melody
Diamond Communications’ financial advisor was Barclays who also provided committed acquisition debt financing for the company. Additionally, Diamond Communications’ legal advisor was Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, while Sculptor Real Estate’s legal advisor was Bryan Cave.
Melody Capital Management’s financial advisor was Goldman Sachs. Additionally, Melody’s legal advisor was Hogan Lovells.
