Anthropic Expands Credit Facility to $15 Billion Ahead of Mega IPO

Anthropic is preparing to finalize an expansion of its revolving credit facility to $15 billion, up from the $2.5 billion facility it secured last year, Bloomberg reported Friday (Sept. 4), citing unnamed sources.

Companies typically finalize their revolving credit facility before notifying banks of their roles in the firm’s initial public offering, according to the report.

Anthropic is getting set to launch an IPO in which it aims to raise an amount equal to or higher than that raised by SpaceX, the report said.

It was reported Aug. 20 that SpaceX achieved the biggest-ever IPO when it raised $75 billion at that outset, before increasing that figure to $86.2 billion with an overallotment option, and that Anthropic expects to equal or surpass that amount.

SpaceX increased its revolving credit facility from $1.5 billion to $5 billion in May, a month before its record-breaking IPO, per the Friday Bloomberg report.

Morgan Stanley is leading Anthropic’s expansion of its revolving credit facility, with Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup also having prominent roles. These four lenders are also leading Anthropic’s IPO, according to the report.

The details of the facility could change, the report said.

Anthropic and the banks declined to comment, per the report.

Anthropic announced June 1 that it confidentially filed for an IPO by submitting a draft registration statement to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

“This gives us the option to go public after the SEC completes its review,” Anthropic said in the announcement. “The proposed initial public offering will depend on market conditions and other factors.”

Days earlier, on May 28, Anthropic became the world’s most valuable artificial intelligence startup in May when it raised $65 billion in a Series H funding round that valued the company at $965 billion post-money. That figure was up from the $380 billion valuation it achieved in a February Series G funding round in which it raised $30 billion.

It was reported Aug. 19 that rival AI startup OpenAI will make its public debut by 2027. OpenAI Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar told the company’s employees that there is no reason to worry if Anthropic goes public first because “we are running our own race,” per the report.