Amazon launches first sterling bond sale amid wider AI-driven debt surge

Amazon commenced the sale of sterling-denominated bonds on Wednesday, a first for the company in British pounds, according to the banks managing the offering.

The issuance underscores a broader trend among major technology companies of diversifying their debt portfolios across currencies to finance artificial-intelligence infrastructure. These firms have sold more than $200 billion in bonds this year, more than double the amount issued during the whole of 2025, according to LSEG data.

Amazon indicated initial price guidance at approximately 70 basis points above UK government bonds for a three-year maturity, about 90 basis points for six years, roughly 105 basis points for 12 years and 110 basis points for 19 years, according to a memo from three banks involved in the financing.

The bonds were expected to be priced later on Wednesday. Sterling is the latest currency added to Amazon’s borrowing framework, following earlier forays into euro- and Swiss-franc-denominated bond markets.

Alphabet, parent of Google, was the first major tech firm to issue sterling bonds, doing so in February with a £5.5 billion five-part offering that included a 100-year tranche. Alphabet has also tapped the Japanese yen, Canadian dollar and Australian dollar bond markets so far this year.

Amazon’s previous bond sale occurred in July, when it raised $25 billion. That issuance saw weaker demand than earlier offerings, a sign that investor appetite for technology-company debt may be approaching its ceiling.

In early September, the European Central Bank expressed concern that increased bond issuance by technology companies in the euro zone could crowd out other borrowers and raise their financing costs.

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