Data‑centre financing swells despite geopolitical jitters. Investors dumped $58 bn into 42 deals this year, up from $34 bn in 2025, Dealogic reports. Global construction reaches nearly 850 sites worth $7 tn, with the US and China leading at 228 and 98 projects. The surge fuels AI and cloud demand, and data storage needs escalating globally today and increasing.

Day One plans to pour €1.2 bn into a new Finnish hub in Lahti and partners with Hyperco at Kouvola, while Green Mountain secured a €371 mn package in 2025. Yet some lenders balked when Byte Dance, Tik Tok’s parent, signed leases, citing data‑safety and China‑US tensions and investment screening criteria shifting in the sector this year.

Simmons & Simmons notes data centres now serve as proxy battlegrounds for geopolitical influence, with lenders scrutinising tenant ties to Beijing. Byte Dance’s insistence that U.S. banks cannot participate in Green Mountain’s deal triggered a scramble that saw Macquarie, Nomura, Patrizia and Kommunalkredit step in, underscoring the cost of political risk for investors and strategists.

Investors face a dilemma: accept higher rents from Chinese tenants like Alibaba, deemed stable, or opt for safer U.S. cloud giants. Meanwhile, Switch Datacenters battles lender reluctance over Telegram’s Russian ties, though the app disputes the claims. The sector’s resilience hinges on navigating data‑safety concerns amid rising scrutiny for global data economy and investment flows.