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Aug 14, 2023 - Economy & Business

Bain Capital buying back Chinese data center operator

Dan Primack
Illustration of a computer keyboard with a red return key resembling China's flag

Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios

Bain Capital agreed to buy Chinese data center operator Chindata Group for $3.16 billion, beating out a rival bid from China Merchants Capital.

Why it matters: This suggests that U.S. private equity firms aren't too worried about an expansion of President Biden's executive order on outbound investment. Or that the Treasury Department will take a liberal view of what it means to be a company operating in the AI sector.

  • Chindata recently issued a press release about how it's "set to ride AI-powered explosion in demand for data storage, processing."

Flashback: Bain Capital, which declined comment, is no stranger to Chindata.

  • It carved the business out of Wangsu Science and Technology in 2019 and then merged it with existing portfolio company Bridge Data Centres.
  • Bain then took the combined company public on the NASDAQ in September 2020 at a $4.9 billion market cap but still retains around a 42% stake.
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