More than a month after finalizing a deal to sell a 49.99% interest in the company, Lightpath has named former Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners executive Chris Morley as its new CEO.
Morley has more than 20 years experience in the telecom industry, most recently serving as senior operating advisor for Stonepeak. Prior to that he spent nearly a decade at Zayo Group, serving in various roles, including chief operating officer, where he led its fiber infrastructure, data center, enterprise networks, and transport service business segments.
Morley will be joined on the Lightpath leadership team by Doug Dalissandro, formerly the chief revenue officer for Lightower Fiber Networks, and David Mayer, formerly the general counsel and executive vice president of business development for Lightower. Dalissandro will become Lightpath’s chief revenue officer while Mayer will be chief strategy officer for the company.
“Lightpath has a rich and successful history of providing advanced communications services in the greater New York metropolitan area, and I’m excited to partner with Altice USA and MSIP to invest in and grow the business,” Morley said in a press release. “Leveraging our shared experiences from Lightpath, Lightower and Zayo, coupled with the extensiveness of the company’s fiber infrastructure network create a unique and relevant platform to the benefit and enablement of our customers.”
Lightpath completed the sale of a 49.99% stake in the company to Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners in December, in a deal with an implied enterprise value of $3.2 billion. The telecom company is controlled by Altice USA, which holds a 50.1% interest in Lightpath.
Before selecting Morgan Stanley as its partner, Altice USA had been in talks with Stonepeak to buy the Lightpath stake, but those talks broke down. Stonepeak later purchased Astound Broadband, which includes RCN, Grande Communications and Wave Broadband, from TPG for $8.1 billion.
“Chris is a talented leader within the commercial communications industry with a proven track record of delivering exceptional value and results, and both Altice USA and MSIP are pleased to have him onboard to lead Lightpath as we embark on this new partnership,” Altice USA CEO Dexter Goei said in a press release. “I am confident that Chris, along with Doug and David, have the experience needed to help Lightpath realize its full potential as one of the leading enterprise and wholesale connectivity providers in the nation.”
