FT Reports Blackstone Told Investors Anthropic May Not Get an Investment Grade Rating After Its IPO
*ANTHROPIC MAY NOT SECURE INVESTMENT-GRADE RATING AFTER IPO: FT you mean the $700BN in unfunded commitments could get in the way?
Context
A junk rating would make it more expensive for Anthropic to borrow for its huge compute plans, a sign that credit markets are wary of AI spending even as its IPO nears.
The lead post is from zerohedge, a markets account, relaying a Financial Times headline, with its own commentary. Anthropic filed for its IPO this week. Investment grade ratings let companies borrow more cheaply, while ratings in the BB range are considered speculative, often called junk.
Deep dive
Zerohedge posted on Friday a Financial Times headline saying Anthropic may not secure an investment grade rating after its IPO, adding its own jab about 700 billion dollars in unfunded commitments. That figure is zerohedge's commentary, not the FT's reporting.
According to the FT story, republished by partner outlets, Blackstone told investors in Anthropic's 63 billion dollar chip financing deal, called Project North Star, that the company is likely to get a high junk rating, in the BB range or higher, from the major agencies after its IPO. People familiar with the matter said Blackstone had earlier signaled it expected an investment grade rating before the end of the year.
The FT reports that a junk rating would limit the money Anthropic can tap, since many pension funds and insurers cannot hold large positions in speculative grade borrowers, so it may need to keep leaning on highly rated partners such as Broadcom to raise debt. Anthropic has more than 112 billion dollars in cash and plans to spend over 800 billion on compute by 2045, the FT says.
The FT also reported that US tech stocks fell to session lows after the story. Anthropic has not commented. We could not access the FT's own page.
What to expect next
Watch for official ratings from Moody's, S&P and Fitch around Anthropic's IPO, and whether Anthropic or its banks push back. A junk rating could raise the cost of its next chip financings. Investors will treat the outcome as a test of how credit markets judge AI companies. The size and timing of the IPO, expected next month, will also shape how agencies view its balance sheet and its long term compute commitments.