IXAfrica Data Centre has appointed Snehar Shah, chartered financial analyst (CFA), as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
The company, known for its development and operation of hyperscale-ready data centres in East Africa, welcomes Mr Shah, who brings over 25 years of diverse industry experience to the team.
“With an extensive background in business development and management, Mr Shah is expected to lead IXAfrica Data Centre to new heights during its next growth phase,” IXAfrica noted.
Having spent more than 15 years at the Global Telecoms Operator, Orange, where he held various leadership roles in Finance and Strategy across the UK, Europe and East Africa, Mr Shah has been deeply involved in the African startup ecosystem.
He played pivotal roles in businesses such as Eaton Towers (Regional CFO, later sold to American Tower in 2018), Azuri Technologies (GM, Africa, serving over 250,000 households across five African countries), and most recently Moringa School (CEO, a leading coding bootcamp provider in the region).
Mr Shah has also served as a Non-Executive and Chair of the Tech Advisory Board at Moringa School.
Chairman of IXAfrica, Guy Willner expressed confidence in the company’s trajectory and Mr Shah’s role in it, stating, “Our company has always had bold plans and ambitions and, we’ve been consistently delivering on those, not in the least by strengthening our team, adding the brightest talent with a well-proven track record in the global market.”
Tosin Awoyinka, Senior Vice President at Helios Investment Partners, welcomed Mr. Shah’s appointment, highlighting his leadership track record, organizational development capabilities, and extensive enterprise network, which align well with IXAfrica’s mission to shape the digital ecosystem in Kenya and East Africa.
Snehar Shah, in his new role as CEO of IXAfrica, expressed his excitement about contributing to Africa’s GDP growth through the development of leading data centres in the region.
He aims to accelerate the Cloud and Artificial Intelligence (AI) revolution that is currently underway.
IXAfrica has received a $50 million investment to fast-track the development of its Nairobi campus in response to the surging demand for internet connectivity in Kenya driven by a young and rapidly growing population.
The company has also announced plans for a secondary data centre campus, solidifying its position as a key player in Kenya’s data centre market.
“Snehar Shah holds a degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from Imperial College, London, and qualifications in Chartered Accountancy from PwC and Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA). He has been recognized among the Top 40 under 40 by Business Daily Africa and holds active leadership positions at Young Presidents Organisation (YPO)” the data centre stated via LinkedIn.