With the announcement of new tariffs from the US, the world’s financial markets are once again reminded of their vulnerability to the geopolitical landscape. For UK businesses relying on US-based public cloud services, this may well be a signal to reconsider where, and with whom, critical digital infrastructure and sensitive data are housed.
Sovereign UK data centres in a changing global climate
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Reassessing digital infrastructure
The far-reaching impact of foreign policy
Decisions made across the world can profoundly affect markets and digital assets. The continued relevance of the US CLOUD Act underscores this point. This legislation empowers American authorities to access data stored by US tech companies – regardless of the data’s physical location. Whether your business-critical databases are in London or Frankfurt, if your provider is American, they’re still under US legal reach.
Coupled with the unpredictable nature of international trade policies and political shifts, it’s clear that relying on US public cloud providers raises genuine questions about compliance, sovereignty, and the practical ability to control your own information.
Why repatriate data to UK-based sovereign data centres?
Some organisations view cloud repatriation as expensive or potentially disruptive when, in fact, the hidden costs of uncertainty, regulatory complexity, and unexpected data-access disputes can be far greater than the up-front costs of repatriation.
Transitioning to a UK sovereign data centre guarantees operational continuity in the face of shifting international policies, and retains control under clear, familiar regulatory frameworks.
- Legal protection under UK law: hosting in a data centre owned and operated entirely within the UK means your data remains completely governed by UK regulations. That means full alignment with GDPR, straightforward compliance, and increased transparency.
- Predictability and stability: a sovereign setup mitigates the risk that a new law or executive order across the Atlantic could directly impact your access and control over your data.
- Strategic independence: for modern enterprises, data sovereignty ensures operational resilience and the freedom to chart your own strategic direction, without external interference.
Building trust in your infrastructure
Choosing a UK-based data centre enables businesses to fully align data strategy with business objectives and supports long-term planning by reducing exposure to unpredictable international forces. As such, there’s a compelling case for UK businesses to entrust their IT infrastructure and workloads to UK-based data centres, especially in view of the risk of global volatility.
Our two UK data centre locations – in the south east (Farnborough/London-edge) and the north west (Manchester) – strategically position us in two of the country’s most economically dynamic regions. Sustained demand for our successful colocation formula, which emphasises environmentally responsible, client-centric, and bespoke solutions, has led us to add further capacity. Our second Manchester data centre (MCR2) is nearing completion, and planning permission has been granted for a second facility (FRN2) adjacent to our flagship Farnborough site. Book a tour today to see our data centres in action.