The last domino is falling. Global buyout firms are completing their retreat from China’s data center sector, with Princeton Digital Group preparing to sell its Chinese assets in a deal valued at up to $1B.

The transaction, reported by the Financial Times, effectively closes out a chapter that began in 2017 when firms like Warburg Pincus, Bain, and Carlyle started pouring capital into China’s booming digital infrastructure.

The deal and the players behind it

Princeton Digital Group, backed by Warburg Pincus, operates data centers across six Chinese cities. The company built out significant capacity during a period when demand for cloud computing and enterprise data storage was surging in the region.

PDG isn’t the only asset heading for the exit. Bain Capital has separately been seeking to sell a stake in Bridge Data Centres, with that deal reportedly valuing the company at $5B as of late April 2026.

Why foreign capital is leaving

The regulatory environment in China has tightened considerably around data infrastructure, which Beijing views as a matter of national security. Foreign ownership of the physical systems that store and process Chinese data has become an increasingly uncomfortable arrangement for both sides.

There’s also the broader chill in US-China investment flows. Private equity firms with American limited partners face growing scrutiny from Washington over investments that could be seen as supporting Chinese technological capabilities. Data centers, which form the backbone of everything from cloud computing to AI training, sit squarely in that sensitive zone.

What this means for investors

As foreign private equity steps back, domestic and regional players are positioned to absorb market share. For investors tracking Asia-Pacific digital infrastructure, the opportunity set is shifting from globally managed platforms to locally controlled ones.

For the departing firms, the $1B PDG deal and the potential $5B Bridge Data Centres transaction represent significant capital being freed up for redeployment. Southeast Asia, India, and Japan are all seeing increased private equity interest in digital infrastructure as Western funds redirect their Asia strategies.