SoftBank shifts to foreign banks as borrowing soars

[TOKYO] SoftBank Group's bank borrowing climbed by 42 per cent in the year to March-end with the increase shouldered by foreign lenders, company filings showed on Thursday.

Borrowing from the conglomerate's principal lenders rose to 4.98 trillion yen (S$60.38 billion) in the last business year, with main bank Mizuho Financial Group the only Japanese lender remaining in the top three backers.

Goldman Sachs Group and JPMorgan Chase & Co are among SoftBank's biggest lenders, the filings showed, with the borrowing coming as the Japanese conglomerate builds its technology investing operations globally.

SoftBank has experienced rapidly changing fortunes over the last year, with its stock price and portfolio valuations plummeting in the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic, forcing the group into asset sales.

Chief executive Masayoshi Son pledged to use cash reserves as a defence but with earnings rebounding and a recently completed share buyback driving stock-price recovery, the firm has expanded backing for its second Vision Fund to US$30 billion.

REUTERS