Reuters / Briefs.co (citing Reuters sourcing) · 2026-08-01
Equinix Seeks to Raise $3 Billion via U.S. Investment-Grade Bond Sale to Fund AI Data-Center Expansion
Equinix (rated investment-grade) is marketing ≥$3 bn across up to four tranches (3-to-10-year maturities) via BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, HSBC, and MUFG, with the longest-dated tranche pricing at ~T+140 bps — a notably wide spread that signals buyers are demanding a rising risk premium for data-center paper even at IG quality. Capex rose 60% YoY to $1.58 bn, underscoring accelerating infrastructure spend. Coming just after a BlackRock-linked data-center note encountered tepid demand at a 7.53% yield (matching HY levels), the Equinix deal is a live stress-test of IG investor appetite for AI infrastructure debt.
TechTimes (citing DTCC data and market analysts) · 2026-08-03
AI Loan Investors Demand Covenants After CoreWeave CDS Spread Blows Out 125 Points to ~855 bps, Implying ~50% Five-Year Default Probability
CoreWeave's five-year CDS hit ~855 bps — a level consistent with deep-distress credits — even as Q1 2026 interest expense doubled to $536 mn and free cash flow was –$4.71 bn. Lenders are now demanding covenant protections in new AI loan deals, a structural tightening that raises the cost and constrains the volume of future debt-funded GPU build-outs. Oracle's CDS simultaneously climbed above 215 bps (a post-GFC record), and AI-linked CDS trading volume reached ~$650 mn in Q2 2026, up ~600% YoY per DTCC data — signalling broad credit-market re-pricing of the entire AI-capex complex.
Benzinga / Moody's (citing Moody's July 24 sector report and Alphabet Q2 2026 earnings) · 2026-07-29
Alphabet Posts First-Ever Negative Free Cash Flow Quarter Since 2004 IPO as Q2 Capex of $44.9 Bn Outruns $39.1 Bn Operating Cash Flow; Raises 2026 Capex Guidance to $195–$205 Bn
Alphabet's first negative FCF quarter on record is a watershed credit event: the company has raised >$85 bn of debt across six currencies over the past year, bringing total debt above $100 bn (per its own SEC FWP filing). Moody's concurrent sector note flagged that direct debt across six AI-capex names (Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, Oracle, CoreWeave) has reached ~$460 bn, with $1.2 trillion in off-balance-sheet lease commitments — $820 bn from leases not yet commenced. The combination of negative FCF, an upward-revised $195–$205 bn 2026 capex guide, and Moody's debt-equivalent treatment of lease liabilities is likely to force further bond market issuance and could pressure Alphabet's Aa2/AA+ ratings over the medium term.