UK data center developer Virtus has appointed Adam Eaton as CEO, effective immediately, replacing Thomas Ee.

Ee, who is group COO at Virtus’ parent company, STT GDC, had held Virtus’ CEO role in an interim capacity for the last nine months.

Before joining Virtus, Eaton was the executive group director, Europe, at Global Switch, where he held responsibility for the company’s European data center portfolio. He has more than 20 years of experience in the data center, cloud, and managed services sectors.

Eaton said: “I first met the Virtus team over 15 years ago. Since then, I’ve watched the company evolve into one of Europe’s leading data center operators.

“Helping Virtus scale and support its next phase of growth is an exciting opportunity. I’m privileged to build on the foundations laid by the existing team, embracing one of the most exciting leadership roles in the industry today.”

Bruno Lopez, president and group CEO at STT GDC and chairman at Virtus, said: “We are delighted to welcome Adam to Virtus at an exciting time.

“His insight and proven ability to scale complex operations make him the ideal leader for the business as Virtus continues to grow its footprint and strengthen its position as one of Europe’s leading data centre operators. We look forward to this new chapter of leveraging Adam’s knowledge, expertise, and stakeholder management skills for further growth across the business.”

UK-based Virtus operates 14 data centers across four campuses in Greater London and a fifth in Buckinghamshire. It has more in development in Germany and Italy.

The company was made a wholly-owned subsidiary of STT GDC in 2017. Macquarie Asset Management acquired a 40 percent stake in the UK operator in 2023.