Amazon has hired banks to arrange its first ever sterling bond sale, according to a memo seen by Reuters, as major technology companies increasingly turn to international debt markets to finance their expanding artificial intelligence operations.
The U.S. technology giant plans to issue four bonds with maturities of three, six, 12 and 19 years, the memo from one of the banks arranging the transaction showed.
The sale could take place as early as Wednesday, depending on market conditions. Amazon has not disclosed how much it plans to raise.
Amazon’s move comes as major cloud computing companies, known as hyperscalers, seek to diversify their funding sources by issuing debt in currencies outside the United States.
Technology giants have increasingly tapped markets for euros, Swiss francs and Japanese yen as they finance massive investments in data centres, computing infrastructure and other technologies needed to support the rapid expansion of AI.
The surge in borrowing has also raised concerns about investor capacity, particularly in the U.S. dollar bond market. Some major investors have warned that the growing volume of corporate debt linked to AI spending is beginning to strain demand.
Amazon’s planned sterling issuance follows a major bond sale by Alphabet, Google’s parent company, which raised £5.5 billion in February through a five part offering. The deal included a rare 100 year bond.
The increased use of international bond markets by technology companies reflects the scale of funding required for the global AI race and growing efforts by hyperscalers to secure financing from a broader pool of investors.
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