Amazon raises almost $6 billion in first-ever sterling bond sale

Amazon has raised £4.25 billion, or approximately $5.76 billion, through its first-ever sterling-denominated bond offering, highlighting the growing financing needs of major technology companies as they invest heavily in artificial intelligence infrastructure.

The four-part bond sale attracted final orders exceeding £10.65 billion, according to one of the banks managing the transaction, although demand was below the roughly £12 billion indicated before pricing was tightened.

Amazon raised £1.25 billion through a three-year bond and £1 billion each through six-, 12- and 19-year maturities.

The offering represents Amazon’s latest move to diversify its borrowing across international debt markets as the company continues to fund large-scale technology and AI investments.

The company has previously accessed bond markets denominated in euros, Swiss francs and Canadian dollars before entering the sterling market.

Amazon’s transaction comes amid a broader surge in debt issuance by hyperscalers, whose spending on data centers, computing infrastructure and AI systems has dramatically increased their capital requirements.

According to LSEG data, hyperscalers have issued more than $200 billion of debt so far this year, more than twice the amount raised throughout 2025.

The growing borrowing activity has raised questions among investors about how much additional debt the market can absorb as technology companies repeatedly return to bond markets to finance AI expansion.

Amazon’s sterling offering also follows Alphabet’s large sterling bond sale earlier this year.

Alphabet raised £5.5 billion through a five-part offering in February, including a rare 100-year bond, with investor demand reportedly stronger than that seen during Amazon’s transaction.

Gordon Shannon, a partner at TwentyFour Asset Management, said the comparatively weaker demand highlighted concerns about the scale of borrowing by hyperscalers.

He noted that investor appetite for technology debt is strong but not unlimited, particularly as companies continue announcing enormous AI-related capital spending plans.

Bloomberg Intelligence analysts have similarly pointed to the limited supply of large technology-company debt in the sterling market as a factor that could support demand for Amazon’s bonds.

However, the 19-year portion of Amazon’s offering could provide a more significant test of investor appetite because it requires buyers to commit capital for a much longer period.

The deal comes as financial markets increasingly scrutinize the cost of funding the AI boom and the amount of debt technology companies are accumulating.

Recent bond offerings linked to AI investment have reportedly attracted weaker demand and required higher borrowing costs than some deals completed earlier in the year.

The European Central Bank has also warned that heavy borrowing by hyperscalers in European debt markets could potentially compete with other corporate borrowers and push up financing costs.

Amazon’s latest financing therefore reflects both the strength of investor demand for major technology companies and growing questions about the sustainability of their borrowing needs.

With AI infrastructure requiring massive investments in data centers, chips, networking equipment and electricity, hyperscalers are expected to remain active participants in global debt markets.

The sterling transaction gives Amazon another source of financing while demonstrating the increasing importance of international bond markets to the technology sector.

For investors, however, the key question is whether strong demand for AI infrastructure will continue to justify the unprecedented level of borrowing now being undertaken by the world’s largest technology companies.