SoftBank sells all 500b yen in bonds on first day

[TOKYO] SoftBank Group Corp's 500 billion yen (S$6 billion) bond issuance was fully subscribed on the first day of a planned two-week sales period as the pricing attracted strong demand from Japanese individuals, said people familiar with the matter.

Nomura Holdings Inc, Daiwa Securities Group Inc and other brokerages were able to cover the entire portion on Monday, and one underwriter received 1.4 times as much demand as the bonds that were for sale, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information isn't public.

SoftBank last Friday priced the notes maturing in April 2025 at a coupon of 1.64 per cent, compared with a preliminary range of 1.3 to 1.9 per cent. The company sold 410 billion yen of bonds at 1.57 per cent last year. This time, SoftBank will give a blue-colour travel bag as a gift to the purchasers.

The sale will be Japan's biggest local corporate bond issuance. Nomura is responsible for selling 150 billion yen worth of notes to retail investors until April 25, while Daiwa will offer for 90 billion yen and SMBC Nikko Securities Inc 80 billion yen. Investors will receive coupon payments in April and October annually.

Representatives at SoftBank and lead underwriters declined to comment as they are still in the process for the sale.

SoftBank Group's shares have risen about 10 per cent since it announced the bond sale on April 1. The stock was also lifted by the initial public offering filing last week from Uber Technologies Inc, the ride-hailing startup in which SoftBank is the largest shareholder.

BLOOMBERG