NVIDIA raises $25B in first bond sale in 5 years, demand hits $85B

NVIDIA is returning to the investment-grade bond market for the first time in five years, raising $25 billion in a heavily oversubscribed offering that drew $85 billion in investor orders. The artificial intelligence chipmaker had initially targeted $20 billion but increased the deal size due to overwhelming demand. The bond sale comprises seven tranches, with the longest-dated notes maturing in 2056. According to a source familiar with the transaction, the primary objective is not to fund capital expenditure—NVIDIA has $13.24 billion in cash—but to establish a liquid benchmark for the company's cost of credit. This move distinguishes NVIDIA from other tech giants like Meta and Alphabet, which are raising debt to finance large-scale AI infrastructure. NVIDIA does not operate data centers, but demand for its processors continues to surge as companies invest heavily in AI model training and inference.

The company last issued bonds in June 2021, raising $5 billion. The current offering is being led by Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, and Morgan Stanley as bookrunners. NVIDIA shares closed 3.3% higher on the day of the announcement. The bond sale comes amid a massive wave of AI-related capital spending, with major technology companies expected to spend over $700 billion on AI this year, up from $400 billion in 2025. By establishing a clear credit benchmark, NVIDIA aims to optimize its future borrowing costs and maintain flexibility for potential acquisitions or investments in processor development, as the company now plans to release new chip families annually.