SpaceX Lines Up $20B Goldman Sachs-Led Bridge Loan to Refinance $17.5B X/xAI Debt Ahead of Planned IPO 

Elon Musk’s SpaceX has lined up an up to $20 billion bridge loan financing via a Goldman Sachs-led group to repay roughly $17.5 billion of debt tied to X and xAI ahead of the aerospace giant’s $2 trillion IPO, according to sources.

Other banks in the group include Bank of America, Citi, JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley, sources said, adding that the facility is expected to sit at the SpaceX level.

Of the roughly $17.5 billion in debt, X incurred about $12.5 billion to finance Elon Musk’s acquisition in 2022, while xAI raised $5 billion through bonds and loans in June 2025 to support the company’s AI buildout, according to a news report.

Morgan Stanley, which originally arranged the debt, signaled to existing lenders on behalf of X and xAI that the companies would pay off the outstanding debt, the same report said.

SpaceX confidentially filed draft initial public offering documents with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in late March, a separate news report said, adding that the valuation target is roughly $1.75 trillion to $2 trillion and could debut as early as June.

The Elon Musk-owned company has been preparing “testing-the-waters” meetings with prospective IPO investors since this month, where executives are expected to provide details supporting its valuation, the report added.

The billionaire has tapped at least 21 banks for its expected IPO, including Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Bank of America and Citigroup as lead bookrunners. After the offering, SpaceX is set to frame AI as its core growth driver, targeting a roughly $28.5 trillion market, while Elon Musk remains CEO, CTO and chairman of its nine-member board.

Following SpaceX’s announced acquisition of xAI in February, the combined entity’s debt jumped roughly two-thirds last year to about $23 billion at the end of 2025, up from $14 billion a year earlier, underscoring the added financial burden from the xAI acquisition, as reported by news reports. A large portion of that increase is linked to a lease financing with Valor Equity Partners for AI infrastructure, including chips supporting xAI.

In January, xAI raised $20 billion in an upsized Series E round from investors including Valor Equity Partners, StepStone Group, Fidelity Management & Research, Qatar Investment Authority, MGX and Baron Capital, with strategic backing from Nvidia and Cisco Investments to fund infrastructure, product development and research.

On the heels of its expected IPO, concerns are mounting about SpaceX’s earnings profile after a report shows that it posted a $4.94 billion consolidated loss in 2025 on $18.67 billion in sales, driven by heavy investment in xAI’s AI buildout, reversing a $791 million profit on $14.02 billion in revenue the prior year. The report also said the combined company ended 2025 with roughly $24.8 billion in cash, alongside $92 billion in assets and $50.8 billion in liabilities.

Octus’ BDC Database shows Apollo Debt Solutions BDC, Diameter Credit Co, Fidelity Private Credit Fund, Great Elm Capital Co and Vista Credit Strategic Lending among holders of xAI’s debt, priced at either a 12.5% fixed rate or SOFR+725 bps floating, with maturities in 2030.

The BDC Database also shows Apollo Debt Solutions BDC, Fidelity Private Credit Fund, Oaktree Specialty Lending, Oaktree Strategic Credit, Silver Point Specialty Lending, Sixth Street Lending Partners and TSLX among holders of X’s debt, priced at either 9.5% fixed or roughly SOFR+650 bps to 675 bps floating, maturing in 2029.

X and xAI’s CLO holders can be found HERE.

Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Citi and Bank of America declined to comment. SpaceX, xAI and Morgan Stanley did not respond to requests for comment.