Colette Kress Takes Charge of Nvidia’s OpenAI Credit Risk

By Elena Vasquez

Nvidia named 59-year-old CFO Colette Kress interim CEO on November 12, 2026, after Jensen Huang resigned with immediate effect.

The company confirmed the move in an 8-K and a CEO transition release, according to 24/7 Wall St.

Kress will keep the CFO title until the board names a permanent successor. The search covers candidates inside and outside Nvidia, 24/7 Wall St. reported.

That change puts one of Nvidia’s most consequential financing choices in the hands of its finance chief. Those choices now sit inside a company worth about $4.01 trillion.

Nvidia stock hit a 52-week low of $148.80 on November 12, 2026, the same day the company announced the leadership move, according to 24/7 Wall St.

Huang resigned amid reports that he was the target of a suspected Chinese intelligence effort. China denies the allegation, which 24/7 Wall St. reported alongside the CEO transition.

Shares closed at $166.19, down $7.54, or 4.34%. Nvidia’s market value finished at about $4.01 trillion. The stock traded at $167.82 at 7:59 p.m. ET in after-hours trading.

What does Kress think about OpenAI?

The claim that Kress will take a tougher approach rests on anonymous sources. They describe her as “a pragmatist” who opposed Huang’s largest financing commitments, according to 24/7 Wall St.

That opposition developed during Kress’s tenure as CFO and took place mostly inside Nvidia. Nvidia did not comment on the reported position. No account says she has canceled or changed an OpenAI deal as interim CEO.

The distinction matters because the leadership change is official, while the tougher policy remains unconfirmed. Kress has not yet used her new role to rewrite the company’s customer financing terms.

Several outlets have described the dispute with different figures:

• The Information reported that Kress opposed a proposed $250 billion credit backstop. It would have let OpenAI fill 8 gigawatts of data-center space with Nvidia chips.
• The Information also reported that Nvidia later split the arrangement and has guaranteed about $100 billion so far.
• Reuters, citing two people familiar with the matter, reported that a $250 billion plan for an OpenAI project in Ohio was cut to $120 billion. The Information also reported the $120 billion figure.
• CNBC framed the dispute around a $105 billion backstop.

24/7 Wall St. cautioned that the figures describe separate accounts and should never be added together. Even so, each puts substantial financing behind OpenAI’s planned compute buildout.

What is Nvidia putting at risk?

A backstop is Nvidia’s promise to cover a customer’s obligation if that customer cannot pay. It lets the buyer order chips sooner, but it moves credit risk onto Nvidia’s books.

That arrangement can accelerate sales and enlarge downside at the same time. Nvidia gets revenue sooner, but it may have to absorb losses if a heavily financed customer falls short.

Nvidia’s last quarterly filing showed $36 billion of off-balance-sheet backstops for neoclouds and $20 billion tied to data-center leases, according to 24/7 Wall St.

On the August earnings call, Kress said OpenAI’s commitments totaled roughly 12 gigawatts of Nvidia compute through 2030. She also said labs backed by Nvidia’s balance sheet would make up about a quarter of the business over the following year.

That makes a stricter financing posture more than a dispute over one customer. It could affect a real share of Nvidia’s expected revenue and the pace of its infrastructure sales.

Has the policy already shifted?

Nvidia was moving toward tighter backstop standards before Kress took the top job. Adil Malik of Origin Partners said, “Nvidia’s backstop standards had already tightened over roughly the past three months.”

Customers have pressed Nvidia to enlarge these guarantees. Its backstop support can cover up to 25% of a deal through residual value support. Broadcom has offered to cover a larger share, according to 24/7 Wall St.

That choice gives Broadcom more exposure because it wins business by taking on the credit risk Kress reportedly opposed. Nvidia has taken a more measured route, leaving some of that burden with its own balance sheet.

A separate financing effort also remains unfinished. August memos covered Apollo Global Management, BlackRock and four other firms raising more than $500 billion, according to 24/7 Wall St.

People familiar with the matter said the plan had produced no deals in months. The earliest an agreement could be announced is January 2027. For now, the fundraising remains preliminary rather than committed capital.

What must investors hear on November 17?

Nvidia’s financial results remain strong even as its stock has retreated. Shares fell 27.28% over the past month, according to 24/7 Wall St.

The latest quarter produced revenue of $96.221 billion, up 105.85%. Nvidia guided to $108.0 billion for the current quarter. Those figures show how much growth now depends on financing large AI infrastructure orders.

At a trailing price-to-earnings ratio of 33, Nvidia’s valuation leaves little room for policy confusion. A more careful backstop policy would trade some financing-led growth for revenue that depends less on Nvidia’s own credit, 24/7 Wall St. argued.

Broadcom carries more of that exposure because it wins business by assuming the risk. A Kress strategy could narrow that gap between the two chipmakers.

Kress faces her first earnings report as interim CEO on November 17. The call starts at 2 p.m. PT. Three disclosures will carry the most weight:

• Updated backstop totals, including the company’s off-balance-sheet exposure and data-center lease commitments.
• Any direct comment from Kress about OpenAI and the reported differences among the $250 billion, $120 billion and $105 billion accounts.
• Whether Nvidia holds its $108.0 billion revenue guidance.

A close below $148.80 after the report would set a new 52-week low, according to 24/7 Wall St.

Her first report will show whether Kress turns her reported pragmatism into policy. If she holds guidance while narrowing backstops, Nvidia may trade some financing-led growth for lower credit exposure, the central trade-off facing its new interim CEO.