Nordic data center and towers firm Digita has promoted Riku Helander to lead the company.

The Finnish company announced this week that the Digita board has appointed Riku Helander as CEO, effective May 1. Vesa Tykkyläinen, who has led the company since 2019, will step down.

“I’m excited to take on the opportunity to lead Digita and its experienced, highly capable team in the next phase of our strategy,” said Helander. “Under GI Partners’ ownership, our goal is to grow as a provider of critical digital infrastructure and services and to ensure a world-class customer experience. Digita is Finland’s largest independent owner of telecommunications towers as well as a major provider of critical data center services. Our radio and TV networks have been a key part of safeguarding security of supply throughout our history. Security of supply remains at the core of everything we do.”

Digita provides digital infrastructure and services to Finland, claiming to be the largest independent owner of telecommunications masts. Investment firm GI Partners acquired Digita from DigitalBridge last year.

Helander joined Digita in 2024, leading the company’s telecom business. He has previously held roles at Normet Group, Cisco, Juniper Networks, Nokia, and ICL Invia (Later Fujitsu).

“It is truly great to have Riku Helander leading Digita’s next phase of development. He has broad and versatile experience from a wide range of demanding leadership roles in the technology industry. This experience, together with Helander’s deep understanding of technology, gives him excellent prerequisites to renew and develop Digita and, together with our experienced personnel, to strengthen our company’s key growth objectives,” added Digita’s chairman of the board, Arne Wessberg.

Wessberg continued: “At the same time, I would like to extend my warm thanks to Vesa Tykkyläinen for his leadership role in expanding the company’s telecom business and for his excellent work and results in a changing media and telecommunications landscape. The company is in a strong position for its next phase of growth.”

Digita operates a data center site in the Pasila area of Helsinki, offering up to 1.7MW across two buildings, with total capacity for 410 racks across 1,650 sqm (17,760 sq ft). The company also operates around 950 tower sites across the country.

Founded in 1999 as a spin-off from national broadcaster Yle, French radio services firm TDF Group bought Digita from Yle in 2000, and sold it to First State Investments in 2012. DigitalBridge (then Digital Colony) acquired the company from First State in 2018. News that DigitalBridge was looking to potentially sell the firm surfaced in June.

Tykkyläinen had led Digita as CEO since 2019. He was previously CEO of Baseware and spent more than 20 years at Nokia.

On LinkedIn, Tykkyläinen said: “After 41 years in corporate life, and almost seven years as Digita’s CEO, it has come time for me to step down from operational roles and start a new chapter in my life.”

He continued: “I am extremely proud that we found my successor within the company. I would like to wish Riku Helander the best of success in his new role as CEO of Digital, starting May 1st. Digita’s future looks bright.”