March 17 (Reuters) - Crown Castle ( CCI ) appointed

telecom veteran Sunit Patel as its new chief financial officer

on Monday, following the divestiture of fiber assets last week

aimed at operational streamlining amid pressures from an

activist investor.

Patel held senior positions earlier at companies such as

T-Mobile, where he played a crucial role in integrating

the business with Sprint following their $26 billion merger. His

appointment at Crown Castle ( CCI ) will be effective from April 1.

"He (Patel) is exceptionally well-suited to help lead Crown

Castle ( CCI ) as we complete our recently announced divestiture and set

course as the only pure-play, publicly traded US tower company,"

said Steven Moskowitz, Crown Castle's ( CCI ) chief executive officer.

In January, the company said that its current CFO, Daniel

Schlanger, would be stepping down from his role on March 31.

Last year, the company named Steven Moskowitz as its chief

executive, succeeding interim CEO Anthony Melone.