Global primary follow-on issuance surges on AI, M&A, infrastructure spending

30th September 2026 11:36 AM

By Raj Saiya

YTD Primary follow-ons at USD 412.6bn, up 74% YoY
Top five deals account for 21.9% of total issuance

Primary follow-on issuance has surged year-to-date as corporates tap open, albeit volatile, equity markets to fund ambitious programmes spanning AI infrastructure, strategic acquisitions and long-term investment.

So far this year (up to 28 September), issuance has reached USD 412.6bn from 3,273 transactions, putting the market firmly on track for its best year since issuance of USD 442.2bn in 2021.

Volumes are up roughly 74% year-on-year from USD 236.8bn in 2025, while deal count rose just 3% from 3,178 transactions, highlighting how a relatively small increase in activity has translated into a sharp rise in average deal size.

The five largest deals alone were worth USD 90.4bn, or 21.9% of the USD 412.6bn total, with AI and digital infrastructure emerging as the single clearest theme.

Americas

The region is the largest contributor by far, with USD 220.9bn raised from 1,331 transactions, or 53.5% of global volumes.

Strikingly, this year’s figure exceeds the region’s combined 2024 and 2025 totals of USD 197.6bn — from fewer deals — as average issuance size jumped to USD 166m, from around USD 97m in each of the two prior years.

The driver is unmistakable. Deals have been dominated by semiconductor and hyperscale issuers raising capital for chip fabrication plants, foundry expansion and the build-out of AI compute capacity, with the top five deals accounting for 37.9% of regional volume – underlining how a cohort of well-funded technology issuers are reshaping US equity supply.

Top Deals in the Americas

Pricing Date	Company	Value (USD m)	Company Nationality	Exchange Nationality	Use of Proceeds	Sector
09-Jul-2026	SK Hynix Inc	26,507	South Korea	United States	Capex for Korean production facilities and EUV scanners	Computers & Electronics
10-Aug-2026	Intel Corp	23,000	United States	United States	General corporate purposes, capex and working capital (foundry / AI-chip build-out)	Computers & Electronics
02-Jun-2026	Alphabet Inc	20,700	United States	United States	Capex to scale AI infrastructure and global compute	Computers & Electronics
01-Jun-2026	Alphabet Inc	10,000	United States	United States	Capex to scale AI infrastructure and global compute	Computers & Electronics
05-Aug-2026	Celestica Inc	3,450	Canada	Canada	Working capital and capital-expenditure investment	Computers & Electronics

Asia

Asia was the second-largest contributor, with USD 130.3bn raised from 1,265 deals, led primarily by China and Hong Kong-listed issuers.

Issuance has been more broad-based than the other two geographies, with its top five deals accounting for 23.2% of regional volume. The YTD average deal size has increased sharply to USD 103.0m, from USD 65.1m in 2025 and USD 35.3m in 2024.

The theme, however, echoes the Americas: Asian issuers are building the AI supply chain, from optical interconnects to battery capacity.

Top Deals in Asia

Pricing Date	Company	Value (USD m)	Company Nationality	Exchange Nationality	Use of Proceeds	Sector
23-Aug-2026	Alibaba Group Holding Ltd	10,206	China	Hong Kong (China)	Investment in full-stack AI capabilities and AI infrastructure	Computers & Electronics
28-Jul-2026	Zhongji Innolight Co Ltd	7,833	China	Hong Kong (China)	Optical-interconnect R&D, capacity expansion and supply-chain resilience	Telecommunications
27-Apr-2026	Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL)	5,001	China	Hong Kong (China)	Global capacity expansion, zero-carbon footprint and R&D	Auto/Truck
09-Jul-2026	Z.ai	4,008	China	Hong Kong (China)	R&D and computing resources for large language model development	Computers & Electronics
07-Jul-2026	Luxshare Precision Industry Co Ltd	3,195	China	Hong Kong (China)	Production-capacity expansion, technology R&D and debt repayment	Computers & Electronics

EMEA

EMEA primary follow-on issuance has staged its strongest recovery in years, raising USD 61.4bn from 677 transactions — well above the USD 39bn raised in 2025 and USD 37.8bn in 2024, and its best showing since 2021. The average deal size rose to USD 90.6m, from USD 57.3m and USD 54.4m in the two prior years.

While the Americas and Asia are defined by AI and digital infrastructure, EMEA’s story is one of M&A and infrastructure.

Several of the region’s largest raises were acquisition-linked, alongside energy-transition and grid investment.

The top five deals made up 33.6% of regional volume, reflecting a market led by a small number of transformational boards putting equity to work.

Top Deals in EMEA

Pricing Date	Company	Value (USD m)	Company Nationality	Exchange Nationality	Use of Proceeds	Sector
03-Mar-2026	Zurich Insurance Group Ltd	4,983	Switzerland	Switzerland	Part-funding the GBP 8.1bn cash acquisition of Beazley Plc	Insurance
20-May-2026	PPC	4,934	Greece	Greece	Accelerating energy and technology investment and expansion	Utility & Energy
22-Jun-2026	RWE AG	4,597	Germany	Germany	Acquiring indirect shares in transmission operator Amprion	Utility & Energy
27-Feb-2026	Engie SA	3,543	France	France	Part-financing the acquisition of UK Power Networks	Utility & Energy
03-Mar-2026	Rosebank Industries plc	2,552	United Kingdom	United Kingdom	Part-funding the USD 3.05bn acquisition of ASP MWI Holdings	Finance

Outlook

While 2026 is shaping up to be a landmark year for follow-on issuance, much of the strength remains concentrated in the Americas and among a relatively small group of large technology issuers.

Whether the market can broaden out to support a more diverse mix of mid- and small-cap fundraisings will likely determine the sustainability of the current issuance boom.