Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (NASDAQ: SPCX) plans to raise $40 billion in bank loans and investment-grade debt to fund a major order of Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ: NVDA) chips. The financing, led by Apollo Global Management (NYSE: APO), is expected to close in 2027.

The deal structure involves approximately $10 billion in bank loans and $30 billion in investment-grade debt. Apollo is tasked with placing the debt with a broad range of investors. Pimco is among a small group of lenders in talks to provide financing, according to reports citing people familiar with the matter.

Financing structure and partners

Apollo’s role extends beyond this single transaction. The firm is one of six entities partnered with Nvidia in August to create financing platforms aimed at mobilizing more than $500 billion for AI infrastructure. Other partners include BlackRock Inc., Blackstone Inc., Brookfield Asset Management, Goldman Sachs, and KKR & Co. Inc.

The broader market context shows Big Tech increasingly relying on debt to fund AI expansion. Amazon.com Inc., Microsoft Corp., Alphabet Inc., Meta Platforms Inc., and Oracle Corp. issued about $200 billion of investment-grade debt in the first half of 2026. This figure is nearly double their total issuance in all of 2025.

SpaceX’s Nvidia dependency

Elon Musk stated earlier this year that SpaceX will use Nvidia hardware exclusively to build its data centers. Last month, Musk indicated that the Colossus 2 data center could more than double its Nvidia chip count by December, potentially running more than 1.2 million Nvidia GB200 and GB300 chips.

Market reaction and outlook

Following the report, SpaceX shares fell 1.15% to $169.94 in extended trading on Tuesday. The stock had closed 0.49% lower at $171.92 during regular hours. Despite the dip, Benzinga Edge rankings indicate a positive price trend across short, medium, and long-term horizons.

What the numbers show

The scale of SpaceX’s $40 billion request highlights the intensifying capital intensity of the AI race. While the hyperscaler ecosystem’s total AI spending is projected to rise from roughly $700 billion this year to $1 trillion in 2027, SpaceX’s single financing round represents a significant concentration of risk on a private entity. The reliance on exclusive Nvidia hardware further underscores a supply-chain dependency that could impact future cost structures if chip availability tightens.

SpaceX (NASDAQ: SPCX) and Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) are trading in near lockstep, with a 30-day correlation of 0.66 linking their price movements. This strong statistical relationship reflects the shared influence of Elon Musk, whose holdings in both companies drove his net worth to an estimated $1.03 trillion following recent gains.

The correlation metric indicates that on most days, when one stock rises, the other tends to rise as well. It does not measure the magnitude of the moves but rather the consistency of directional alignment. A reading of 1 implies perfect synchronization, while 0 suggests no relationship. The current 0.66 figure is considered moderately strong.

Market movements and analyst views

SpaceX shares climbed nearly 8% on Monday to close at $171.09, marking the highest level since mid-June. Data cited by CNBC shows the stock is up approximately 58% since bottoming in early August. In a Sunday note, Morgan Stanley described the stock as "cheap" and maintained its $300 price target, which sits about 75% above Monday's closing price.

Trading activity spiked alongside the rally. Monday's options volume reached 1.7 million contracts, double the 30-day average. Of these, about 1 million were call options worth more than $640 million.

What the Numbers Show

The convergence of SpaceX and Tesla prices highlights a concentration risk for investors seeking diversification. With a correlation of 0.66, holding both stocks offers less protection against company-specific shocks than widely assumed. Options pricing reinforces this view: SpaceX puts carry implied volatilities equal to or higher than calls, indicating market makers see a sharp drop as equally likely as a surge. This symmetry suggests the market is pricing in significant volatility without a clear directional bias for downside protection.

The Musk factor

Elon Musk leads both companies, and a substantial portion of his wealth is tied to their equity. Forbes estimates his total wealth at $1.03 trillion, counting his stakes in Tesla and SpaceX. SpaceX also trades on artificial intelligence narratives, having acquired Musk's xAI last year and generating revenue by renting computing capacity to Google and Anthropic.

While the current correlation is tight, it relies on a short 30-day window. Company-specific events, such as the next Starship test flight or SpaceX's third-quarter report, could quickly decouple the two stocks.