Dongyang Sunshine plans to invest over 100 billion to acquire Qinhuai Data, as the Guo family and son gamble heavily on AI computing power

On the evening of February 24th, Dongyang Guang issued a major announcement that it is planning to acquire control of Dongshu No. 1, upgrading its previous investment of 28 billion yuan in Qinhuai Data’s China operations from “equity stake” to “controlling stake.”

Behind this transaction, which is hailed as the largest deal in China’s IDC industry history, is a key strategic move by the Guo family to bet on AI computing power.

As an industry leader with over 30 years rooted in manufacturing, Dongyang Guang has accumulated extensive experience in pharmaceuticals, new energy, and other fields. Recently, the company has been actively expanding into liquid cooling and computing power, revealing its ambition to cross into AI.

Investing Over 10 Billion Yuan to Cross into Computing Power

On the evening of February 24th, Dongyang Guang announced that it is planning to issue shares to acquire control of Yichang Dongshu No. 1 Investment Co., Ltd. (hereinafter “Dongshu No. 1”) and raise supporting funds. This transaction is expected to constitute a major asset restructuring and related-party transaction.

The core of this capital operation revolves around Qinhuai Data’s China business.

This merger and acquisition process began as early as September 2025. At that time, Dongyang Guang, led by its controlling shareholder Dongyang Industrial, along with other investors, injected capital into Dongshu No. 1, with Dongyang Guang and its affiliates contributing a total of 7.5 billion yuan.

Subsequently, Dongshu No. 1 transferred the funds to another subsidiary of Dongyang Guang, Dongchuang Future, which signed a merger loan agreement with a syndicate to obtain leverage. Dongchuang Future then transferred the loan funds and shareholder contributions to Dongshu No. 3, which, as the transaction entity, acquired 100% of Qinhuai Data’s China operations for 28 billion yuan in cash.

From a structural perspective, since Dongyang Guang held no more than 30% of Dongshu No. 1 at the time of acquisition, it was not required to consolidate the company upon completion. As of the deal closing on January 16th, Dongyang Guang had invested 3.45 billion yuan, fulfilling most of its capital commitments. This transaction is also the largest merger and acquisition in China’s IDC industry history.

Dongyang Guang’s willingness to spend heavily is mainly due to Qinhuai Data’s industry position. Public information shows that Qinhuai Data was founded in 2015 and is one of China’s leading IDC operators. According to the “China Computing Power Center Service Provider Analysis Report (2024)” issued by the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, Qinhuai Data ranks second in overall scale, just behind GDS.

In terms of capital operations, Qinhuai Data has previously attracted significant capital interest. The company went public on NASDAQ in 2020, with a market cap approaching $4.9 billion at its peak. In 2023, Bain Capital successfully privatized it at a valuation of $3.16 billion (about 22.8 billion yuan). After delisting, Bain split off Qinhuai Data’s overseas business and began seeking buyers for its China operations while retaining its international assets.

The acquisition of its China business by Dongyang Guang for 28 billion yuan, which is 5.2 billion yuan higher than Bain Capital’s privatization price two years ago, offers a substantial return.

Qinhuai Data’s impressive financial performance also supports this acquisition. Financial data shows that its China operations generated revenue of 2.607 billion yuan and net profit of 745 million yuan from January to May 2025.

Beyond solid fundamentals, Qinhuai Data’s close ties with top tech companies are a key highlight. As ByteDance’s core computing power supplier, between 2020 and 2022, ByteDance’s revenue contribution from Qinhuai Data accounted for 81.7%, 83.2%, and 86.3%, respectively; in 2024 and January-May 2025, the sales amount (excluding tax) from Qinhuai Data’s largest client in China accounted for 80.23% and 83.54%.

Although ByteDance has recently begun building its own computing centers, industry insiders generally believe that Qinhuai Data’s long-term service experience with top clients provides irreplaceable advantages.

The announcement of Dongyang Guang’s acquisition of control of Dongshu No. 1 is seen by the market as a strategic upgrade from “equity stake” to “controlling stake.” Just over a month after the previous deal, the company moved quickly to integrate, demonstrating strong confidence in Qinhuai Data’s value.

Dongyang Guang’s “Capital Strategy”

The confidence behind Dongyang Guang’s multi-billion yuan purchase of Qinhuai Data stems from its solid core business.

As a leading enterprise with over 30 years in manufacturing, Dongyang Guang has consistently focused on high-end aluminum foil, electronic components, and chemicals, maintaining industry leadership. From 2022 to 2024, its annual revenue has exceeded 100 billion yuan.

This move into the computing power sector is not Dongyang Guang’s first cross-industry venture. As early as 2003, when it went public via a backdoor listing, the company acquired a near-bankrupt pharmaceutical factory in Yidu, Hubei, marking its entry into the pharmaceutical industry.

In 2003, Dongyang Guang established Dongyang Guang Changjiang Pharmaceuticals, and in subsequent years, introduced Roche’s Oseltamivir, also exploring the new industry of ecological cultivation of winter and summer caterpillars. In 2015, Dongyang Guang Changjiang Pharmaceuticals successfully listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, establishing itself as one of the world’s largest macrolide antibiotic producers.

While expanding into pharmaceuticals, Dongyang Guang also sought new growth points. In 2017, it invested 130 million yuan to acquire 100% of Nanyuan Magnetic Materials, which had been loss-making for three consecutive years. The company also invested 180 million yuan to promote its lithium battery cathode material project, marking a key step toward new energy materials.

In 2018, Dongyang Guang acquired a 50.04% stake in Dongyang Guang Changjiang Pharmaceuticals for 3.221 billion yuan, achieving dual main businesses in electronics materials and pharmaceuticals. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic causing a sharp decline in Oseltamivir sales, the company’s performance was under pressure, leading it to divest Dongyang Guang Changjiang Pharmaceuticals for 3.723 billion yuan and focus on new materials.

In 2021, Dongyang Guang sold a 60% stake in Nanyuan Dongyang for 192 million yuan, strengthening its position in the new energy battery sector by collaborating with the listed company Putailai.

In August 2025, Dongyang Guang privatized and delisted Dongyang Guang Changjiang Pharmaceuticals, which was then merged into Dongyang Guang Yao, also controlled by Dongyang Guang, and later re-listed through a backdoor listing.

Recently, Dongyang Guang has shifted its strategic focus entirely to AI. In December 2025, its liquid cooling product subsidiary, Dongyang Guang Fluor, obtained a 7 billion yuan capital injection from Xingyin Financial Assets by selling 3.0172% of its shares. In March this year, it also jointly invested 100 million yuan with Zhongji Xuchuang to establish Deep Intelligence Cooling, focusing on liquid cooling products.

With Qinhuai Data integrated into its portfolio, Dongyang Guang has completed its industry layout in AI, covering liquid cooling and IDC.

Dongguan’s Wealthiest Family

Dongyang Guang’s over 30 years of development are closely tied to its founders’ dedicated efforts.

The company’s roots trace back to Guo Meilan and Zhang Zhongneng in the 1990s. At that time, China’s electronics industry was rising, but high-purity aluminum foil remained monopolized by Japanese and Korean companies, creating a significant market gap.

Guo Meilan and Zhang Zhongneng seized this opportunity, starting from a small factory in Dongguan, Guangdong, focusing all their efforts on developing high-purity aluminum foil.

In 2003, they successfully produced 6-micron electronic aluminum foil, breaking the Japanese-Korean monopoly, attracting domestic giants like Huawei and ZTE. That same year, they took the company public via a backdoor listing, establishing Dongyang Guang as their first listed company.

While most industry players remained in traditional aluminum foil processing with thin profit margins, Guo Meilan and Zhang Zhongneng looked further into the promising pharmaceutical sector. By introducing Roche’s Oseltamivir, they quickly built a foundation in pharmaceuticals. In 2015, their pharmaceutical arm, Dongyang Guang Changjiang Pharmaceuticals, listed on the Hong Kong main board, becoming the group’s second listed company.

As the group’s industries advanced steadily, Dongyang Guang faced a leadership transition. In November 2022, Zhang Zhongneng passed away due to illness, and his son Zhang Yushuai inherited his controlling interests in the listed companies. By late 2025, 62-year-old Guo Meilan transferred her 71.75% stake in Nanyuan Yueneng Electronics and 74.63% in Nanyuan New Jing Technology to her 38-year-old son Zhang Yushuai, who thus became the actual controller of Dongyang Guang.

Notably, Zhang Yushuai is not a “parachuted” second-generation rich. Public records show he graduated from Zhejiang University, studied abroad with a focus on finance and engineering, and started from grassroots positions within Dongyang Guang’s electronics and new energy divisions.

Since 2018, Zhang Yushuai has advocated for Dongyang Guang to enter high-value-added materials such as lithium battery aluminum foil and PVDF binders, aiming to cultivate new growth drivers.

Currently, Dongyang Guang’s market value has reached 113.8 billion yuan, and according to the 2025 Hurun Rich List, Guo Meilan and Zhang Yushuai’s combined net worth is 40 billion yuan, ranking 146th among China’s wealthiest, and making them the wealthiest family in Dongguan.