Masayoshi Son's US$50b investment pledge shows his knack for spectacle

Tokyo

MASAYOSHI Son's well-timed meeting with Donald Trump is introducing US audiences to a side of the billionaire already familiar in Japan - a consummate showman.

His knack for spectacle was on display on Tuesday as the founder of SoftBank Group Corp posed for cameras with the president-elect at Trump Tower in New York. Mr Son had just promised a US$50 billion investment in the US that would create 50,000 jobs. SoftBank's shares jumped to the highest in 15 months in Tokyo trading.

Mr Son, who rose to global prominence when SoftBank acquired Sprint Corp in 2013, is known overseas primarily as a savvy investor and entrepreneur. But the Japanese have long seen his dramatic side, like the time he choked up on stage remembering his difficult upbringing, with a giant black-and-white photo of his immigrant grandmother hovering in t…