Symbolic imageAnthropic IPO reported oversubscribed as banks weigh higher valuation
Bloomberg reports that Anthropic's share offering is multiple times oversubscribed. According to the Financial Times, banks are considering a valuation of $1.5tn or more.
Anthropic published its prospectus on Tuesday, 10 November, offering 825 million shares at $70 to $78 to raise up to $64.4bn: 801.4 million new shares plus 23.6 million from existing holders. Bloomberg reports that orders covered the whole offering at launch. The Financial Times, citing insiders, says the banks could press Anthropic to price above the range. Handelsblatt puts the valuation implied by the prospectus at $1.4tn. AMD, Broadcom, Google, Micron, Microsoft, Nvidia and TSMC are subscribing to a separate $26bn private placement, and with the overallotment option the total would reach about $100bn, according to Handelsblatt. Pricing is set for Wednesday, 18 November, with trading starting the next day.
Founders sell but keep control
Breitbart, citing TechCrunch, reports that each of the seven co-founders will sell about 3.4 million shares, just under $250m at the $74 midpoint. They would keep control through supervoting Class F shares, and the Long-Term Benefit Trust elects a majority of the board.
Doubts over insider sales and circular backing
A Financial Times commentary warns that shadow insider sales and circular supply-chain backing may cause after-market indigestion. Bloomberg quotes Selby saying the lock-up could trigger an AI correction, and the New York Times notes that some of the biggest investors are also key business partners.