Global Switch – Company Profile

Founded in 1998, Global Switch owns and operates state-of-the-art data centers across Europe and Asia-Pacific. The company is headquartered in London and its data centers are located in various other cities such as Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Madrid, Paris, Hong Kong, Singapore and Sydney. Global Switch data centers collectively occupy around 390,000 sq. meter of space and more are currently under development. Global Switch caters to the needs of organizations of all sizes, including private and public sector entities.

The data centers operated by Global Switch offer high-level security and the convenience to host any type of data such as email, file sharing, customer relationship management (CRM), productivity applications, databases, enterprise resource planning (ERP), and virtual desktops. With Global Switch, enterprises can seamlessly integrate their data with internet service providers, telecom companies and cloud service providers.

History:

The idea for Global Switch was conceptualized based on the growing need for organizations to manage their data in a safe and efficient manner. This is especially true for organizations that have global operations. Building and operating a data center requires considerable expertise, which is why organizations usually prefer to outsource this function to a professional date center services provider. If things are done in-house, there’s always the risk of data loss and data theft. If confidential data is compromised, it could be a huge setback for an organization. As a solution to such problems, Global Switch was launched in 1998.

The turning point for Global Switch came in 2007 when it was fully acquired by Reuben Brothers (RB). It was under RB’s leadership that Global Switch was able to emerge as a leading data center services provider. In 2014, Global Switch was rated BBB+ by Fitch and Baa2 by Moody’s. This was the highest credit rating for a data center in the world at that time. Over the last few years, RB has sold their stake in Global Switch to various China-based institutional and corporate investors.

Funding:

Global Switch has received investments worth £4.9 billion via three rounds of funding. Some of the key investors include Shagang Group and AVIC Trust.

Acquisitions:

Global Switch has not made any acquisitions in recent times. However, it may be open to good opportunities that may be available in the future.

Competitors:

Global Switch competes with other data center operators such as Trustteam NV, Digital Realty, Equinix, Telehouse Europe, NTT Data, and Interxion.

Global Switch board members:

Global Switch is guided by chairman He Chunsheng, who had earlier worked with Shagang Group Co., Ltd. Chunsheng has a bachelor of engineering degree from Suzhou Silk Institute of Technology (now Soochow University). The company is managed by CEO John Corcoran, who had earlier worked with organizations such as Multiplex Group and Hambros Bank Limited. Corcoran had studied at University of Sydney, from where he completed his bachelor degrees in economics and law.