Global Switch

Global Switch, established in 1998 by the Reuben Brothers, operates as a prominent owner, operator, and developer of large-scale, carrier-neutral data centres across Europe and Asia-Pacific. The company was founded with the acquisition of a single data centre in London's Docklands, which has since expanded into a significant global portfolio. In 2016, a consortium of Chinese investors called Elegant Jubilee, led by Jiangsu Shagang Group, acquired a 49% stake, marking a significant milestone in the company's expansion and strategic direction. This was followed by further investments, solidifying the ownership structure with major Chinese enterprises.

The core of Global Switch's business is providing wholesale data centre solutions to a diverse client base that includes governments, financial institutions, enterprises, global system integrators, telecommunications providers, and managed service providers. The business model revolves around developing and leasing out secure and resilient technical space, equipped with the necessary power and cooling infrastructure to house customers' servers and IT equipment. Revenue is primarily generated through long-term leases for this data centre space, often on a multi-megawatt scale, which provides stable and predictable income streams. The carrier-neutral nature of their facilities allows customers to connect with a wide variety of telecommunication and cloud service providers, creating rich ecosystems within their data centres.

Global Switch's service offering is centred on providing highly resilient and secure environments for its clients' critical IT infrastructure. Their data centres are designed to meet Tier III+ standards, ensuring high levels of uptime and reliability through redundant power and cooling systems. A key benefit for clients is the operational excellence and robust security measures, including 24/7 monitoring and on-site personnel. The company places a strong emphasis on energy efficiency, designing its facilities to minimize environmental impact and reduce operational costs for its customers, a significant selling point in an energy-intensive industry. This focus on sustainability is integrated into their development of new data centres, which are built to achieve high BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) ratings.

Keywords: data centres, colocation, wholesale data, carrier-neutral, real estate, infrastructure, telecommunications, cloud services, Asia-Pacific, Europe