Google parent Alphabet is preparing to raise around $3 billion through its first bond offerings in Hong Kong and Singapore dollars, as the technology group seeks additional funding for its expanding artificial intelligence infrastructure.
The planned sales are expected to raise at least $2.2 billion, according to two people familiar with the matter. Alphabet is considering a minimum issue size of HK$8 billion, equivalent to about $1 billion, for the Hong Kong dollar portion and S$1.5 billion, worth approximately $1.2 billion, for the Singapore dollar offering.
The final size, timing and pricing have not been determined, the sources said, requesting anonymity because the discussions are private.
The transaction could be launched as early as Thursday, with investors expected to submit orders and pricing to be completed during Asian trading hours. The bonds are expected to settle on November 19, according to one of the sources.
A term sheet reviewed by Reuters showed that Alphabet had appointed HSBC and JPMorgan as joint global coordinators. The debt is expected to receive ratings of Aa2 from Moody’s and AA+ from S&P.
Bank of China (Hong Kong), ICBC (Asia) and Standard Chartered are working on the Hong Kong dollar offering. DBS, OCBC and UOB have been appointed to handle the Singapore dollar portion.
The proposed Hong Kong dollar bonds could carry maturities of two, five and 10 years. The Singapore dollar securities may include two-, five-, 10- and 30-year maturities.
Alphabet did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The planned fundraising comes as the company increases investment in data centres, specialised chips and other computing infrastructure needed to support its AI services. The offering would also expand its borrowing across international debt markets following a series of large bond sales this year.
In a filing dated October 29, Alphabet said it had issued $45 billion in US dollar-denominated notes and $35.8 billion in foreign currency notes during the first nine months of the year. The funds were raised for general corporate purposes.
Last week, the company secured €6 billion, equivalent to around $6.7 billion, through a euro-denominated bond sale. In August, it issued $25 billion in US dollar bonds and A$5.5 billion, worth about $3.8 billion, in Australian dollar debt.
Other major technology companies have also turned to bond markets to finance their expansion. Meta completed a $15 billion US bond sale last week, while Oracle issued $10 billion in bonds.
The latest deals underline the growing financing requirements of technology groups as competition in AI drives substantial spending on computing capacity and data centre development.
