Broadcom has entered into a $63 billion deal involving Anthropic, which utilizes a special purpose vehicle to facilitate hardware leasing. Under this arrangement, Wall Street lenders, including Bank of America, Blackstone, Citigroup, and Morgan Stanley, fund the purchase of Broadcom chips and data center equipment. Anthropic then rents this hardware, while Broadcom provides residual value support, covering potential losses if the equipment value declines by the end of the lease.
This agreement follows a previous commitment where Broadcom pledged to lend Anthropic up to $42 billion, as noted in the AI firm's IPO prospectus. The current deal structure reflects a broader trend where chipmakers act as lenders to AI labs. Industry observers note that Anthropic currently holds a junk credit rating, sitting one notch below investment grade, which introduces credit risk for the involved parties.
Market commentator Jim Cramer described the Broadcom deal as beneficial for all participants, though he suggested that Nvidia would face significant media scrutiny if it pursued a similar strategy. Nvidia has previously faced criticism regarding circular financing, where suppliers fund customers who then purchase their products. In August, Nvidia agreed to guarantee up to $105 billion in data center leases for OpenAI.
Analysts point out that Broadcom faces similar critiques regarding circular financing, as major tech companies including Amazon, Microsoft, and Google fund Anthropic, which subsequently spends those funds on their services. This creates a cycle where cash flows back to the initial backers. These financing structures highlight how chip manufacturers are increasingly tying their stock performance to the creditworthiness of their primary AI customers.
