Anthropic pushes IPO to mid-October, locks in $15B credit line

Anthropic, the maker of the Claude AI assistant, is pushing toward what could become the largest initial public offering in history, with bankers pricing the company at as much as $2 trillion — more than double its last private valuation of $965 billion. The listing, initially expected in late September, has slipped to mid-October, according to Forbes and Reuters.ijr+1

A Massive Credit Line and a Crowded Syndicate

Morgan Stanley ↗ 1.75% is leading the underwriting, with Goldman Sachs ↗ 1.85%, JPMorgan ↗ 0.68% and Citigroup ↗ 2.49% in prominent roles across a syndicate seventeen banks deep. Anthropic is simultaneously finalizing a roughly $15 billion revolving credit facility, with the top-tier banks each committing about $1.25 billion in balance sheet exposure to secure their underwriting positions.forbes+1

The company confidentially submitted a draft registration statement to the SEC on June 1, 2026, and is expected to publicly file its prospectus in late September before launching a roadshow in mid-October. A listing date ahead of the November midterm elections remains the working timeline, according to Forbes.ijr+2

Revenue Surge Underpins the Valuation

Anthropic's annualized revenue run rate passed $65 billion in August, up from $47 billion earlier in the year, according to Bloomberg figures cited by Forbes. The company also reported its first positive adjusted operating income, a milestone no other frontier AI lab has reached. Bankers are reportedly pricing the IPO against 2028 revenue projections of $190 billion to $200 billion to support the $2 trillion figure.forbes

The company raised $65 billion in Series H financing in May at a $965 billion post-money valuation, with Amazon Amazon.com, Inc. ↗ 1.87% holding roughly 21 percent and Alphabet ↗ 1.88% about 15 percent. A $2 trillion debut would eclipse SpaceX's $1.77 trillion listing in June as the largest IPO ever.startuphub+2

Part of a Broader AI IPO Wave

Anthropic's listing arrives amid a historic stretch of AI companies entering public markets. SpaceX listed in June, and OpenAI is also preparing to go public, with the three companies collectively targeting approximately $3.8 trillion in combined market capitalization. Evercore ISI strategists have drawn parallels between the current wave and past tech booms, warning that while sentiment remains strong, the surge of large offerings could pressure existing AI stocks.gurufocus+1

The delay, paired with the scale of the credit facility, suggests Anthropic is in no rush to accept a discounted price. As Forbes noted, "a company that arranges fifteen billion dollars of standby credit before it files is not going to market because it needs the money."forbes