Nebius Raises $700 Million for U.S. Expansion

Nebius, formerly known as Yandex N.V., a publicly-traded European AI infrastructure company, has secured $700 million to support its expansion in the United States. The funding has been provided by various well-known investors, with a few such as Nvidia, Accel, and Orbis already disclosed. The financing involves the issuance of 33.3 million Class A shares at $21 each, indicating a 3% premium on the stock's average price since resuming trading in October.

After a three-year hiatus due to sanctions against Russia-affiliated companies, Nebius resumed trading on the Nasdaq. Following an extensive divestment process, Nebius emerged in July with plans to offer comprehensive infrastructure for AI companies. In addition to its core cloud infrastructure business, Nebius operates other ventures including Avride, Toloka, and TripleTen. The company is pursuing a hybrid approach to expand its footprint, encompassing co-location facilities and the establishment of new sites. Nebius faces competition from cloud hyperscalers and well-financed private players like CoreWeave. 

The company intends to leverage the raised capital to accelerate its growth as it eyes an annualized run rate of $750 million to $1 billion by the end of 2025. As part of the funding deal, Accel partner Matt Weigand is set to join Nebius's board of directors. The company is also considering raising additional capital, either through equity or debt, to support its expansion plans.