NexFibre appoints Rajiv Datta CEO

Rajiv Datta

UK-based fibre network operator NexFibre has named Rajiv Datta as its chief executive officer.

Datta starts his role effective immediately, replacing Bernardo Quinn who was appointed interim CEO at the start of the year.

The chief has over 25 years of experience in the digital infrastructure and fixed telecoms sectors working across the US, Europe and Asia.

He served as chief technology officer at Colt Technologies from 2016 where he was responsible for developing Colt’s network technology strategy. Prior to Colt, he held several roles at AboveNet Communications now Zayo, including chief technology officer and chief operating officer. The former AboveNet boss was tasked with the day-to-day management of the company, including sales, marketing, service delivery, network management, IT, engineering and infrastructure.

At NexFibre, Datta will lead the business’ mission to deliver its network to 5 million premises by 2026, using the latest XGS-PON architecture capable of symmetrical speeds of up to 10 Gbps. The company also announced it reached more than 500,000 premises passed by its fibre network.

Quinn will remain as an advisor to the board for the remainder of the year.

Datta, CEO of nexfibre, said: “With a fully-financed plan to invest £4.5 billion and a set of world-class shareholders and partners, nexfibre is incredibly well-positioned to be impactful at a pivotal time in the UK broadband market. I look forward to working with the team, our shareholders and our partners to execute on our strategy of delivering high-quality broadband capability that provides long-term, sustainable competition, and has a lasting impact on communities across the UK.”

Andrea Salvato, Chairman of Nexfibre, added, “The Board and I are delighted that Rajiv is joining the nexfibre team, and we look forward to working with him and our partners at Virgin Media O2 to create a national scale challenger, boosting wholesale competition, driving consumer choice and providing significant value to the UK economy. We would like to thank Bernardo Quinn for his commitment and contribution. He has been instrumental in creating the nexfibre organisation, and setting the impressive pace of the programme to date. ”