Softbank-backed fintech Oneconnect chooses New York over Hong Kong for IPO November 14, 2019 Oneconnect, the fintech arm of Chinese financial conglomerate Ping An, has chosen New York over Hong Kong for the launch of its initial public offering (IPO). The company, which is backed by Softbank, filed a prospectus for an IPO on Wednesday and plans to list its shares on NASDAQ. Read more: Alibaba poised to launch [...]
Vision Fund’s Wework splurge drags Softbank to $6.4bn loss November 6, 2019 Softbank’s Vision Fund’s soured bets on tech prospects like Uber and Wework saw the fund lose $8.9bn and drag its parent company to its first quarterly loss in 14 years today. Softbank’s high profile splurge on Wework saw the company fall to a $6.4bn quarterly loss in results revealed today. Read more: Wework hits the [...]
Softbank ‘tightening governance’ at firms it backs after Wework’s near collapse November 4, 2019 Softbank is said to be tightening governance at companies it has backed, as the conglomerate tries to limit the control of startup founders and renew confidence in its investments after Wework nearly collapsed. The Japanese company, which has a $97bn investment arm called Vision Fund, will reportedly announce harsher governance standards and restrictions on dual-class [...]
Softbank seeks control of Wework via financing package October 14, 2019 Softbank is reportedly preparing a financing package for Wework that would give it control over the cash-strapped shared office space company. The package would significantly increase the stake of Softbank, which already owns around a third of Wework, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters. This would further dilute the influence of Wework co-founder [...]
Softbank executive suggests Wework should stay private until it can ‘demonstrate cash flow’ October 8, 2019 The tech world has been rocked by a string of disappointing or cancelled IPOs this year, as companies failed to convert huge private valuations into success on public exchanges. One Softbank executive has suggested a novel solution: firms should wait until they can demonstrate suitable levels of cash flow before listing publicly. Asked about the [...]
Softbank boss Masayoshi Son ‘embarrassed’ by track record October 7, 2019 Softbank chief executive Masayoshi Son has admitted that he is “embarrassed and flustered” by his track record at the Japanese conglomerate. Read more: Softbank’s second fund hit by failed Wework listing In an interview with local media, Son said he felt that his accomplishments at Softbank had not yet lived up to his goals. “When [...]
Softbank’s second Vision fund hit by failed Wework IPO October 4, 2019 Softbank founder and chief executive Masayoshi Son is struggling to raise money for a second technology investment fund following the failed public offering of office space provider Wework. Son is preparing to go-ahead with the Vision Fund 2, despite advice to delay, according to Reuters. However, the fund is likely to be smaller than the [...]
Softbank executives bristle at Vision Fund investment scheme September 24, 2019 Some executives at Japanese technology titan Softbank have reportedly expressed concerns about an incentive scheme whereby employees can take out large personal loans to invest in the group’s Vision Fund. The investment scheme is designed to align the interests of employees with the $97bn technology fund, but the Financial Times reported the scheme is described [...]
Why Softbank is struggling to attract investment for its second Vision Fund September 22, 2019 Softbank’s Vision Fund was created to disrupt the tech sector – and it succeeded. Launched in 2017, the $100bn (£80.2bn) investment vehicle is the world’s largest tech fund, and made Softbank chief Masayoshi Son the industry’s biggest investor. The unicorn ‘kingmaker’ The gargantuan Vision Fund (VF) quickly became known for making bold bets on promising [...]
Wework IPO: Firm cuts founder’s supervoting power to save float September 13, 2019 Wework is set to slash the supervoting power of its co-founder to assuage fears of investors as it tries to save the company’s initial public offering (IPO). The firm will also appoint a lead independent director by the end of the year as well as cut Neumann’s voting power from 20 votes per share to [...]