The driver for 2026 will be the real step-change in capex requirements all around the AI data boom and the needs of hyperscalers, said Fabianna Del Canto, co-head of EMEA capital markets at MUFG, on the latest episode of the ‘Credit Exchange with Lisa Lee’ podcast.

“The absolute quantum required by the data centres dwarfs really any other type of infra-spend that we’re seeing,” said Del Canto.

Among myriad other effects, AI has brought about a previously-unimaginable type of demand on, effectively, the entire energy supply ecosystem. Because it’s impacting such a large-scale industry and multiple secondary ones, this is a “real seminal moment and period in time, in terms of how we’re shaping the economies going forward for the future,” she added.

But financing the AI boom will look different in Europe and the US.

“In Europe, you’re seeing a lot of discussion amongst leaders in the energy space trying to solve this from a sustainable angle,” Del Canto said. “It’s not energy at any cost or any type.”

Beyond data centres’ capex needs, Del Canto expects capital markets to be just as busy in 2026, if not busier. As a result, there’s a risk of spreads widening.

“We see a very healthy pipeline, and supply is going to keep ticking up in our view,” she said.