July 8 (Reuters) – Bank of America has extended a $520 million credit line to OpenAI, its first loan to the AI company that is preparing for an initial public offering, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters on Wednesday.
The loan makes BofA one of OpenAI’s largest lenders and bolsters its credentials as a market leader in AI-related capital markets financing, the source said, requesting anonymity to discuss confidential information.
BofA has helped raise nearly $500 billion in capital for AI-related companies since 2025, accounting for 60% of such fundraising across investment-grade debt, leveraged finance and equity capital markets, according to internal data seen by Reuters.
The second-largest American lender is also eyeing advisory roles on the planned IPOs of OpenAI and Anthropic, according to a second source familiar with the matter.
The move follows its role in SpaceX’s blockbuster IPO, where it was a joint bookrunner and led the U.S. retail distribution effort. The rockets-to-AI company led by Elon Musk debuted in June at a valuation of more than $2 trillion after pulling off the world’s largest IPO.
OpenAI confidentially filed for a U.S. IPO last month. Reuters has reported that the ChatGPT maker, a key player in the AI race, is targeting a valuation of more than $1 trillion in a listing that could come as soon as this year.
Mega IPOs are typically very lucrative for Wall Street banks, generating hundreds of millions of dollars in fees while opening the door to years of follow-on business.
OpenAI did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment. The news of BofA handing the company a credit line was first reported by Bloomberg earlier on Wednesday.
The AI company was founded in 2015 as a research-focused nonprofit, but created a for-profit arm four years later to help fund the soaring costs of developing AI systems.
(Reporting by Saeed Azhar in New York and Manya Saini in Bengaluru; Editing by Diti Pujara)
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