Alphabet Inc., the parent company of Google, is preparing to issue an extremely rare corporate 100-year bond—known as a century bond—denominated in British pounds sterling. This landmark offering marks Alphabet’s debut in the sterling bond market and forms part of a broader multi-currency debt sale designed to fund the company’s aggressive expansion in artificial intelligence.
According to reports on February 9, 2026, Alphabet has engaged banks to structure the deal. The century bond will be issued alongside a substantial U.S. dollar bond offering of approximately $15 billion, divided into up to seven tranches, with the longest maturing in 2066 (a 40-year note). The company is also considering potential issuances in Swiss francs, further diversifying its funding sources.
Century bonds are exceptionally uncommon in the corporate world, historically favored by governments or highly stable institutions such as universities. Their ultra-long maturity allows issuers to lock in borrowing costs for a full century while appealing to investors seeking long-duration, high-quality debt. For a technology company like Alphabet, issuing debt that extends into the next century signals strong confidence in its long-term dominance.
The primary purpose of the fundraising is to support Alphabet’s soaring capital expenditures, forecast to reach $175–185 billion in 2026. These funds will primarily finance data centers, servers, cloud infrastructure, and advanced computing capabilities needed to develop and scale its Gemini AI models. The move aligns with a broader trend among major hyperscalers—Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, and others—who have tapped bond markets at record levels to finance the global AI infrastructure buildout.
Despite holding substantial cash reserves and generating over $100 billion in annual operating income, Alphabet is opting for low-cost debt rather than depleting reserves or diluting shareholders through equity issuance. Investor appetite for investment-grade tech debt remains robust, with preliminary pricing guidance on longer U.S. dollar tranches suggesting spreads around 120 basis points over Treasuries. The sterling century bond is expected to attract interest from pension funds and insurance companies that need long-duration assets to match their liabilities.
This issuance follows Alphabet’s $17.5 billion U.S. bond sale just months earlier and underscores the enormous scale of investment required to lead in AI. By committing to debt that matures in 2126, Alphabet is making a clear statement: its strategy is built not just for the next quarter, but for generations.
The deal is expected to price in the coming days, with final terms to be announced shortly.