Asus secures US$2 billion HSBC-arranged loan to support AI push

[SINGAPORE] Asus has secured a US$2 billion syndicated loan arranged by HSBC, through its wholly owned Singapore subsidiary, to support its operations and expansion, including its artificial intelligence push.

The financing for Asus Global marks the group’s first offshore syndicated loan. Strong lender demand enabled the facility “to be upsized” to US$2 billion, HSBC said in a press statement on Monday (Oct 19).

Asus chief financial officer and spokesperson Nick Wu said in the statement that support from international lenders would help the group deepen its AI applications and expand its global presence.

“The world is entering an AI supercycle, with demand for AI applications rising rapidly,” he said, adding that the group will continue to develop an AI strategy that spans cloud AI, edge AI and physical AI.

“The support from international lenders for this syndicated loan will provide solid momentum for deepening our AI applications and expanding our global presence,” said Wu.

The financing comes as technology companies are pouring billions of dollars into cloud and AI infrastructure. In August, Amazon increased its planned investment in Louisiana data centres to US$18 billion, from US$12 billion, adding a third campus.

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Microsoft, meanwhile, reported US$41 billion in capital expenditure for the quarter ended June, with about two-thirds spent on assets such as processors supporting AI and other computing workloads.

HSBC said the loan will support Asus’ liquidity, financial flexibility, operations and expansion plans.

The bank acted as sole coordinator, mandated lead arranger and book runner, and facility agent. Its teams in Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong worked on the transaction.