ByteDance Ltd has secured a US$29.6 billion loan, upsizing the facility from an initial US$20 billion after strong lender demand, in what will be Asia’s second-largest dollar-denominated borrowing this year.
According to Bloomberg, the TikTok owner drew more than US$30 billion in orders ahead of the commitment deadline, reflecting robust appetite from banks despite a broader slowdown in Asia’s loan market.
Proceeds from the facility will be used mainly for general corporate purposes. The deal has yet to be formally signed as banks continue to confirm their final allocations.
Citigroup Inc and JP Morgan Chase & Co are coordinating the financing, which carries a three-year tenor with an option to extend it to five years.
The loan has an opening margin of 68 basis points over the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) compared to 85 basis points over SOFR for ByteDance’s previous offshore borrowing.
The financing comes as the Beijing-based technology group steps up spending on artificial intelligence. ByteDance is considering increasing capital expenditure to as much as US$70 billion this year, more than double last year’s level, to expand data centres and other AI infrastructure.
Only SoftBank Group Corp has raised a larger dollar-denominated loan in Asia this year, with its US$40 billion bridge facility signed in March.
ByteDance last entered the global loan market in 2024, raising US$10.8 billion from around 20 international and Chinese lenders.
