Digital Realty joint venture Digital Connexion has appointed CB Velayuthan as its new CEO.
As reported by TechCircle and other local press, Velayuthan has taken over leadership of the Brookfield/Digital/Reliance Jio joint venture (previously known as BAM Digital Realty).
“India is one of the most dynamic markets in our industry today. I am excited about the opportunity to lead the stellar team at BAM Digital Realty and look forward to building on the strong foundation they have laid and taking it to the next level as we stay focused on serving the current and future technology needs of our clients,” said Velayuthan.
According to his LinkedIn, Velayuthan took on the role this month after leaving Equinix where he had been global MD for strategic alliances since 2020. Prior to that, he spent more than 15 years at Nokia.
He takes over from Seema Ambastha, who had taken on the CEO role at the joint venture in September 2021, joining from NTT.
“We are delighted to welcome CB onboard. He joins BAM Digital Realty at an exciting juncture as we fortify our vision to meet the growing demand for data centers in India,” said Arpit Agrawal, head of infrastructure for India and the Middle East at Brookfield.
“India presents a significant growth opportunity as it makes forward strides on its digital aspirations,” added Serene Nah, managing director and head of Asia Pacific, Digital Realty. “We welcome CB to his new leadership role at BAM Digital Realty and look forward to benefiting from his vast experience building platforms and driving partnerships in India.”
Digital Realty and Brookfield launched a 50:50 joint venture known as BAM Digital Realty in July 2021 with the aim to build and operate facilities in “multiple Indian metros."
Reliance Jio joined the venture in July 2023 and the name changed to Digital Connexion. The closing of the investment and name change is officially expected to take place in the coming weeks.
The companies paid $30 million for a 10-acre plot in Chennai in early 2022 and broke ground on a 20MW facility there earlier this year. The first 20MW greenfield data center (MAA10) on the 100MW campus is expected to be completed by the end of 2023.
In August 2021, Brookfield acquired a 30-acre land parcel in Navi Mumbai for Rs 600 crore ($81m) from real estate developer K Raheja Corp, and reportedly plans to build a data center on the site.
The JV acquired another 2.15 acres in the Chandivali area of Mumbai over the summer to build a 40MW data center.
Digital Realty and Brookfield Infrastructure also both own Latin American data center firm Ascenty, which has more than 250MW of capacity across 30 facilities in operation or development in Brazil, Chile, and Mexico.
