Apollo And Blackstone Just Turned Broadcom, Anthropic's AI Chip Bet Into Somebody Else's Debt

A portion of the $35 billion financing package supporting Broadcom Inc. and Anthropic’s AI infrastructure buildout is expected to enter the secondary market in the coming months, allowing investors to begin trading the debt.

The deal uses a special-purpose vehicle (SPV) to finance the purchase of custom AI chips developed by Google and Broadcom before leasing the hardware to Anthropic. Broadcom is providing a backstop for Anthropic’s payment obligations on the largest senior tranches of debt.

The financing, structured by Apollo Global Management (NYSE:APO) and Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) will be drawn in stages, with the first tranche expected to become available for trading soon, sources familiar with the matter told Bloomberg. By early 2027, roughly $15 billion of the debt is expected to be accessible to investors.

The transaction will use a delayed draw format, allowing the borrower to draw on the money raised when needed. There will be approximately 16 separate releases over a period of a little over a year as more chips are produced. 

The financing was initially issued through the private placement market, where debt securities are typically held by a smaller group of investors. After the financing is drawn, portions of the debt will begin trading through the 144A market, where institutional investors, including insurers and mutual funds, can buy and sell privately issued securities.

This deal represents a creative push by the private markets to help fund artificial intelligence infrastructure. 

Other private equity managers such as Brookfield Asset Management, KKR & Co., and Blackstone have all poured billions of dollars into AI infrastructure.

Earlier this month, Blue Owl Capital (NYSE:OWL) launched a new U.S. digital infrastructure venture designed to capitalize on surging data center demand. 

The move reflects a broader bet across private markets that the biggest winners of the AI boom may not be the companies building the next-frontier model, but the investors who own the infrastructure that every AI developer depends on.

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