Blackstone Changes Its Tune, Says Anthropic May Struggle to Obtain an Investment-Grade Credit Rating After Going Public
According to a report by the UK's Financial Times, Blackstone Group told investors that Anthropic is more likely to receive a speculative-grade rating in the BB range after going public, rather than the investment-grade rating previously expected. If it goes public successfully next month, Anthropic is expected to set a record for the largest IPO in history, and its prospectus discloses that it plans to invest more than $800 billion in computing infrastructure by 2045. If the rating falls into speculative grade, it will restrict investment by institutions such as insurance companies and pension funds, and Anthropic may still need to rely on higher-rated suppliers such as Broadcom to support debt financing.
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Blackstone adjusted its rating expectations ahead of Anthropic's IPO; readers can use this to understand the constraints on its subsequent debt financing channels and costs.
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On the Eve of the Largest IPO in History, Blackstone Suddenly Reverses Course, Saying Anthropic May Not Obtain an Investment-Grade Credit Rating
2026-10-31 21:10 IT Home - Qingyuan
IT Home, October 31 news: According to a report by the UK's Financial Times on the 30th, Blackstone Group has told investors that Anthropic may temporarily be unable to obtain an investment-grade credit rating after going public. This expectation represents a reversal from Blackstone's previous statements and also adds difficulty for Anthropic in raising funds for its massive expenditures.
According to people familiar with the matter, in Anthropic's latest $63 billion (IT Home note: currently equivalent to approximately RMB 420.183 billion) chip financing transaction, Blackstone Group informed investors that major credit rating agencies are more likely to assign Anthropic a higher-tier speculative-grade rating after it goes public, rather than an investment-grade rating.
If Anthropic successfully goes public next month, it is expected to set a record for the largest IPO in history. The prospectus discloses that the company's "bold but rational" plan is to invest more than $800 billion (currently equivalent to approximately RMB 5.34 trillion) in computing infrastructure from now until 2045.
Whether it can obtain an investment-grade rating bears on whether Anthropic will be able to borrow at lower interest rates in the future to fund AI infrastructure construction. The company currently holds more than $112 billion (currently equivalent to approximately RMB 746.991 billion) in cash and cash equivalents, and investors expect the IPO may also bring it about $100 billion (currently equivalent to approximately RMB 666.957 billion) in financing.
For several months previously, Blackstone had been telling investment partners that it expected Anthropic to obtain an investment-grade rating before the end of the year. However, people familiar with the matter said that, based on guidance from major credit rating agencies, Blackstone recently adjusted its expectations and believes Anthropic is more likely to receive a rating in the BB range or higher.
Such a rating would narrow the sources of financing available to Anthropic. Many insurance companies and pension funds are subject to investment regulations and cannot make large-scale investments in debt issuers whose credit ratings are at speculative grade. Anthropic may therefore still need to rely on higher-rated suppliers to support its debt financing.
Earlier this week, Wall Street banks completed the "Project Polaris" financing transaction to fund Anthropic's leasing of Google chips, involving chips with a total power of 1.5 gigawatts. Of this, more than $42 billion (currently equivalent to approximately RMB 280.122 billion) in senior loans is guaranteed by Broadcom.
Broadcom participates in the joint development of these chips and itself has an investment-grade credit rating; another $18 billion (currently equivalent to approximately RMB 120.052 billion) in subordinated debt is secured by the rent paid by Anthropic.
Institutional investors prefer senior debt because, in the event of borrower default, senior debt is repaid before subordinated loans. Broadcom's relatively high A-tier credit rating is an important condition enabling Anthropic to obtain this financing.