The London Internet Exchange (LINX) and Internet Exchange incubator Asteroid have entered into a cooperative agreement to strengthen interconnectivity across Africa, starting with Kenya. Announced on Monday, the partnership will see Asteroid transition customer networks at its Mombasa and Nairobi exchange points to LINX-operated hubs by the end of 2025. This milestone marks a significant development in the digital infrastructure landscape of East Africa.
Asteroid, which has played a transformative role in Kenya’s interconnectivity landscape over the past five years, will hand over operations to LINX while ensuring continuity for its customers. Asteroid CEO Remco van Mook praised the progress made since entering the market, noting that this agreement allows LINX to build on its mission of supporting the growth of interconnection in East Africa. The move also demonstrates how successful incubation of interconnection markets can create lasting impact in the region.
For LINX, this agreement represents both a privilege and an opportunity. CEO Jennifer Holmes expressed her commitment to carrying forward Asteroid’s achievements, emphasizing that LINX’s priority will be to continue strengthening interconnection in Kenya. The collaboration is not only a testament to LINX’s global expertise but also a reflection of its intent to contribute to the broader digital ecosystem across Africa and beyond.
The transition will be carefully managed, with technical teams from both Asteroid and LINX working closely to ensure a seamless migration for customer networks. Customers will also benefit from LINX’s 24/7 engineering support and additional interconnection services such as LINX Private VLAN and the Microsoft Azure Peering Service (MAPS). This guarantees enhanced reliability, scalability, and access to innovative digital services as the region’s connectivity needs expand.
Asteroid’s existing customers will be able to continue operations locally while gaining opportunities to scale further. Through LINX’s global footprint, they will have access to new peers not only in Kenya but also in international locations across the UK, the US, and soon Ghana. This expanded reach is set to strengthen Kenya’s role as a digital hub and position its local networks to integrate more deeply into the global internet ecosystem.
As Asteroid prepares to cease its operations in Kenya by the end of 2025, both organizations have committed to working together in communicating each step of the transition to stakeholders. This collaboration represents a forward-looking approach to building resilient and interconnected networks, reinforcing Kenya’s position at the heart of Africa’s digital growth story.
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