SoftBank to use proceeds from first Vision fund for the second
Live MintSoftBank Group Corp plans to use proceeds from its first Vision Fund to bankroll the $38 billion it has committed to the second, a person aware of the development said, in a show of unflinching confidence in its huge tech bets commanding sky-high valuations when sold. The Japanese investment firm, led by artificial intelligence advocate Masayoshi Son, on Friday said it had secured pledges for a second Vision Fund totalling about $108 billion. With over a third from SoftBank itself, however—using “distributions from Vision Fund 1 and other SoftBank assets”, said the person—that headline figure depends in part on proceeds from existing Vision Fund portfolio firms listing publicly at a brisk pace in a consistently buoyant market. SoftBank gave no breakdown for the remaining $70 billion, only saying it had signed memoranda of understanding with Microsoft Corp and Japan’s three mega banks, as well as existing Vision Fund investors Apple Inc and Hon Hai Precision Industry Co Ltd. One newcomer is Kazakhstan’s sovereign wealth fund with an investment likely under $3 billion, based on how much its government has earmarked for alternative assets.