As the Chinese government bolsters oversight of foreign companies' data practices, larger businesses will increasingly decouple data storage and processing to mitigate compliance risks. But small- and medium-sized firms may be forced to pick between the Chinese and global markets. In recent weeks, several high-profile Western firms have announced their intention to separate their business activities in China from the rest of their global operations, citing increasingly stringent regulations and uncertain geopolitical tensions. On Sept. 27, the Financial Times reported that U.S.-based Kyndryl, IBM's former information technology services unit, was planning to split off its China business, with one source saying the company had deemed it too difficult to operate as a U.S. corporation ''in the data and technology space in China.'' U.S. consulting firm Bain & Company also recently announced its intention to separate its operations in China from those it has elsewhere in the world; according to a...
