Kirkland Advises Bain Capital on its Investment in Eaton Fiber

Kirkland & Ellis advised Bain Capital on its investment alongside Tillman Global Holdings in Eaton Fiber, an affiliate of Tillman Global Holdings, to accelerate the expansion of Verizon's fiber broadband network through fiber deployment across the United States. The investment, which was led by Bain Capital's Special Situations team, fully funds the acquisition of Ripple Fiber and the next phase of Eaton Fiber's network expansion. In connection with the investment, Eaton Fiber has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Ripple Fiber, a leading 100% fiber-optic internet provider and network operator which is the first step in Eaton Fiber’s buy-and-build strategy to bring Verizon fiber broadband to over a million locations outside Verizon’s current fiber footprint. Ripple Fiber's existing shareholders, Platform Investment Partners and KLT, will continue to back the Eaton Fiber platform alongside Tillman and Bain Capital.

The transaction is expected to close before the end of 2026, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals.

Read the transaction press release

The Kirkland team included corporate lawyers Abhishek Kolay, Matthew O’Brien, Kartik Khanna, Michael Nester and Oseremen Eromosele; debt finance lawyers Dan Clayman, Yuli Wang and Austin Witt; and tax lawyers Christine Lehman and Alex Stephenson.