Colocation for financial institutions:
Infrastructure for regulated IT environments

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Colocation within the EU legal area – for banks, FinTechs and insurance companies with high requirements for availability, security and documentable IT outsourcing.
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ISO 27001:2022 certified

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HAMBURG · LUXEMBURG · MÜNCHEN
Locations DE & LU

The starting point

IT infrastructure in the financial sector:
Requirements and developments

Financial institutions today operate highly critical IT systems that must be both efficient and compliant with regulations.
In addition to classic requirements such as performance and availability, the following are becoming increasingly important:
  • Transparency regarding IT locations
  • Documentation of operational processes
  • Management of third-party IT service providers
  • Resilience and recoverability
  • Transparent contract structures
Regulatory frameworks such as DORA, MaRisk and BAIT reinforce this trend.

The challenge

The Foundation of Sovereign Financial IT

From banks and payment service providers to asset managers — we support financial institutions with modern infrastructure, full data control, the highest security and compliance standards, and the scalability that AI-driven business models demand.
Between Innovation Pressure and Regulation: Fintechs and neobanks are setting new standards as regulatory requirements rise. With us, you can modernize your business-critical IT – agilely, flexibly, and cost-efficiently – while maintaining full data control and avoiding compliance risks.

What does colocation mean for financial institutions?

Colocation describes the operation of a company’s own IT systems within an external data center. In this arrangement, companies retain:
  • Control over Hardware and Architecture
  • Transparency regarding location
  • Influence on Security Processes
Portus Data Centers: Benefit from scalable infrastructure and high availability.

DORA and IT Outsourcing: What Is Changing

DORA obliges financial entities to manage the use of third-party IT service providers in a structured manner. The focus lies on:
  • Documentation of all ICT service providers
  • Risk Assessment
  • Resilience Measures
  • Contractual Provisions
  • Audit rights
Portus Data Centers: Auditable processes and documented SLAs.

How Portus Data Centers Supports Financial Firms

Portus operates data centers in Germany and Luxembourg.
  • EU legal area
  • Transparent Location Structure
  • Documented Processes
  • Carrier-neutral infrastructure
  • High Availability
  • Scalability
Portus Data Centers: Three locations within the EU legal jurisdiction, transparent contract structure.

“We are creating a state-of-the-art platform for companies of all sizes - regionally anchored, but with the best international connections.”

Falk Weinreich, Group CEO of Portus Data Centers

Why Portus Data Centers?

The Technological Foundation
for the Financial Sector

As a colocation provider focused on availability, security, and regulatory requirements, Portus Data Centers manages the operation of the data center infrastructure – while you retain control over your systems, data, and architectures.
Between Innovation Pressure and Regulation: Fintechs and neobanks are setting new standards as regulatory requirements rise. With us, you can modernize your business-critical IT – agilely, flexibly, and cost-efficiently – while maintaining full data control and avoiding compliance risks.

Infrastructure for Regulated IT Environments

Portus Data Centers supports financial firms in the structured implementation of technical and organizational requirements for IT outsourcing. These include, among others:
  • Operation of a High-Availability Data Center Infrastructure
  • Provision of Physical Security and Access Controls
  • Support through documented operational processes
  • Basis for comprehensible outsourcing models

Certifications and Standards

Data center operations in accordance with established standards such as ISO 27001, as well as additional site-specific certifications.

These serve as a foundation for structured security and operational processes within a regulated environment.

Digital Sovereignty

Portus Data Centers operates data centers in Germany (Hamburg, Munich) and Luxembourg – all locations within the European Union. For financial firms, this means:
  • Clear attribution to European legal jurisdictions
  • comprehensible regulatory classification
  • Structured Assessment of Data Processing and Access

Carrier-neutral and flexibly integrable

Portus Data Centers operates independently of network operators and manufacturers. You run your own systems and applications – and utilize:
  • Flexible network connections
  • Direct Cloud Connect Options
  • Freely selectable provider structures

AI requires scalable IT

Financial institutions must accelerate innovation while ensuring resilient, high-performance systems. Furthermore, the EU AI Act classifies credit and credit-scoring models, as well as fraud detection systems, as high-risk AI, subject to strict auditing requirements. Colocation enables dedicated GPU clusters as isolated environments.

  • Dedicated infrastructure for AI workloads – e.g., isolated GPU clusters without shared resources.
  • Support with transparent system architecture and documentation for audit-relevant applications
  • Scalable capacities for growing data volumes and compute-intensive models

Use cases

Who Is Colocation
at Portus Data Centers Suitable For?

Banks and Credit Institutions

Banks and financial institutions operate mission-critical systems that require both high availability and structured documentation of their IT infrastructure. At the same time, requirements regarding outsourcing management and the traceability of IT services are on the rise.

Colocation at Portus Data Centers provides clearly attributable infrastructure within the EU legal jurisdiction, thereby supporting organizational requirements for transparency, operations, and control. 

  • Transparent site and infrastructure structure
  • Support with Outsourcing and Documentation Obligations
  • Support with Outsourcing and Documentation Obligations
  • Clear separation of operation and usage

FinTechs and Neobanks

FinTechs and neo-banks often experience rapid growth and require an infrastructure capable of keeping pace with regulatory requirements and increasing workloads. At the same time, they must ensure their IT architecture remains flexible and scalable. 

Colocation enables them to operate their own systems under their own control while simultaneously leveraging a scalable, professionally managed infrastructure.

  • Rapid scalability without in-house data center investments
  • Flexible combination of proprietary infrastructure and the cloud
  • Clear Structure for Future Regulatory Requirements
  • Predictable costs and short deployment times

Insurance

Insurance companies operate long-term IT systems subject to rigorous requirements regarding stability, data storage, and access security. At the same time, resilience and continuous operation play a pivotal role. Colocation at Portus provides a stable infrastructure environment designed for long-term operation and transparent security processes.
  • High Availability for Inventory and Claims Systems
  • Structured Data Storage over Extended Periods
  • Physical and organizational security measures
  • Stable operation without load-peak interference

Trading and Trading Platforms

Trading applications place particularly high demands on latency, availability, and deterministic performance. Even minor delays or fluctuations can have a direct impact on trading decisions and systems. 

Colocation at Portus enables the operation of dedicated infrastructure featuring stable network connections and clearly defined system environments.

  • Low and stable latency
  • High Availability for Continuous Trading
  • Dedicated Infrastructure Without Interference
  • Direct connectivity to networks and marketplaces

Asset Manager

Asset managers and investment firms rely on data-intensive applications that demand constant performance and low latency. At the same time, their systems must operate in a stable and reproducible manner. 

Colocation provides dedicated infrastructure free from shared resources, thereby offering a reliable foundation for sensitive and performance-critical applications.

  • Low Latency for Real-Time Analytics
  • Dedicated infrastructure without "noisy neighbor" effects
  • High Stability for Data-Intensive Workloads
  • Flexible integration of specialized systems (e.g., analytics, AI)

Solutions and Services

We operate the infrastructure.
You control your systems and applications.

The customer has full control

Financial services providers own and control their hardware, determine access rights and security policies. Redundant power supply, cooling, building security and network management are in professional hands. Enterprise infrastructure without the capital investment of your own data center.

Scalability without lead times

We offer maximum flexibility. Whether new AI workload, regulatory capacity increase or systems integration following an acquisition, additional capacity is available in days or weeks, not quarters. No building application or major board-level discussion required.

Best connectivity and low latency

Low-latency connections to other financial institutions, cloud on-ramps for leading hyperscalers and international networks. Edge and carrier-neutral locations enable data processing where it originates. Critical for AI-powered real-time applications.

Sustainability as a reporting advantage

Financial institutions must meet increasing sustainability requirements, both regulatory and customer driven. Portus Data Centers sources 100% renewable energy and reports transparent energy metrics, values that can be incorporated directly into ESG reporting.

Security at the highest level

Multi-level access controls, 24/7 video surveillance, biometric access systems and strictly separated customer areas. Optional cages provide additional physical isolation. Indispensable for financial institutions with the highest security requirements.

FAQ

Colocation and DORA
in the Financial Sector

Colocation refers to the operation of a company’s own IT systems within an external data center. Companies retain control over their hardware while utilizing the infrastructure of a specialized provider.

Colocation enables:

  • physical control over systems
  • clear location assignment
  • high availability
  • scalable infrastructure
  • flexible network connectivity
DORA requires financial entities to systematically document their IT service providers, assess risks, and demonstrate resilience measures. Infrastructure models can assist in the organizational implementation of these requirements.
Colocation itself does not constitute proof of compliance. However, it can establish a foundation for implementing requirements such as location transparency, documentation, and control capabilities.
The location determines, among other things:
  • Applicable law
  • Regulatory assessment
  • Access Options
  • Requirements for Data Processing
Carrier-neutral data centers enable the free choice of network operators and cloud connections. Companies are not tied to a single provider.
In colocation, the company operates its own hardware. In the cloud, infrastructure and resources are provided by the vendor.

Next Step

Speak to a
Portus Data Centers expert

Colocation for regulated IT Environments: Talk to us about infrastructure for banks, FinTechs, and other regulated companies.

Rebekka Reitmaier

Inside Sales
Mail: sales@portusdatacenters.com

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  • Technical Analysis in Focus
  • Locations in Germany & Luxembourg (EU)
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