Nikkei: Hidden Debt at Five U.S. Tech Giants Hits $1.65 Trillion, Up 8x in Four Years
A Nikkei study puts off-balance-sheet obligations at five U.S. tech giants at $1.65 trillion — 8x higher than four years ago — on top of $1.35 trillion of official balance-sheet debt, with Moody's separately identifying $1.2 trillion in off-balance-sheet deals and $820B+ in data-center construction obligations. Hyperscaler bond issuance hit $225B through mid-2026, a 973.7% year-over-year surge on pace for $400B for the full year. The hidden debt is legitimate accounting — long-term GPU/server purchase agreements and data-center leases disclosed in footnotes — but S&P notes market participants are 'growing leery of quickly rising leverage,' and Moody's flags the shift from asset-light to asset-heavy models. The HN thread drew 158 comments.
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