Telecoms and internet group SoftBank has reorganised its corporate venture operations under a new executive committee, according to a memo sent to employees by CEO Masayoshi Son.
The memo, which was seen by Reuters, reveals SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2 and Latin America funds will be incorporated into a structure where they operate through three teams along geographical and functional lines, along with any funds launched by the Japan-based corporate in future.
The move comes less than a month after news emerged that SoftBank was cutting 150 jobs across its SoftBank Group International (SBGI) division and Vision Funds, representing about 30% of its investment team. It followed a $23bn loss for the company in the preceding quarter.
Alex Clavel, appointed chief executive of SBGI in June, will supervise SoftBank’s investors in the US and Latin America. That includes the portfolio built by its two Latin American funds, which received a total of $8bn in capital before its early-stage team was spun off into an external firm called Upload Ventures.
The firm’s Europe and Asia investments will be led by Greg Moon, a Vision Fund managing partner focusing on Asia.
Moon had previously been president and CEO of SoftBank Ventures Korea before it expanded into its current incarnation, SoftBank Ventures Asia, which has been headed by JP Lee since 2018.
Navneet Govil, chief financial officer of the Vision Funds, will manage other functional teams according to the memo, covering areas such as finance and regulatory compliance rather than investment.
SoftBank formed the original $98.6bn Vision Fund in 2017 with considerable financial help from Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds but it was the sole limited partner for the $30bn Vision Fund 2. Both invest globally but the value of their shareholdings has plummeted in recent months as tech stocks continue to fall.
