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SpaceX Sells $25 Bn Bonds to Refinance Elon Musk's X, xAI Debt

Elon Musk’s SpaceX sold $25 billion in investment-grade bonds to refinance debt linked to X and xAI, reducing annual interest costs to $1.5 billion

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Summary
  • SpaceX issued $25 billion of investment-grade bonds on Tuesday to refinance debt from X and xAI, drawing peak demand of $89 billion in orders.

  • The bond sale reduces the consolidated Musk empire's annual interest payments to $1.5 billion, down from $1.8 billion previously required for a smaller debt load.

  • SpaceX unlocked the $8 trillion high-grade bond market following its acquisition of xAI in February 2026, which secured the company an investment-grade rating.

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SpaceX sold $25 billion of investment-grade bonds on Tuesday to refinance debt from X and xAI, according to a Bloomberg report.

The consolidated entity will pay $1.5 billion in annual interest on the $25 billion debt. This drops from the $1.8 billion previously required to service $17.5 billion of separate debt. The transaction follows SpaceX's historic $75 billion initial public offering earlier this month.

"To invest in this, you’ve essentially got to be a believer," Art Hogan, chief market strategist at B. Riley Wealth, said, in remarks reported by the publication.

The bond offering saw peak demand of $89 billion in orders. Investors placed bids despite SpaceX shares losing about a quarter of their value over three recent trading sessions before making a slight recovery on Tuesday.

Accessing High Grade Debt

SpaceX acquired xAI in February 2026 and secured an investment-grade rating. This unlocked the $8 trillion high-grade bond market, moving the business away from the expensive $3 trillion junk bond and leveraged loan market.

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According to public filings, xAI generated $3.2 billion in revenue last year while reporting an operating loss of $6.4 billion, significantly wider than the $1.6 billion loss recorded in 2024.

Robert Schiffman, senior credit analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence, said the company is likely to require additional debt to finance its expansion plans. Meanwhile, Ross Pamphilon, chief investment officer for fixed income at Impax Asset Management, said the company’s credit outlook depends largely on continued growth in Starlink and whether its AI business can move toward financial self-sustainability before exhausting available equity, according to the report.

The Long Debt Road

Elon Musk announced a $44 billion acquisition of X, formerly known as Twitter, in April 2022, leaving a Morgan Stanley-led bank syndicate holding $13 billion in debt. The banks offloaded this debt in early 2025. xAI then acquired X in March 2025 and borrowed an additional $5 billion that June.

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Following the February 2026 merger, SpaceX used a $20 billion bridge facility to pay off existing lenders. The short-term loan carried a 4.58 per cent interest rate as of March 31, according to regulatory documents.

Tuesday's bond sale featured tranches with coupons ranging from 5.35% to 6.65%. SpaceX used the proceeds to refinance the $20 billion bridge loan. Robert Schiffman said the company’s trajectory over the next few years remains difficult to predict.