SoftBank Vision Fund, the $98.6bn investment fund managed by telecommunications group SoftBank, has entered negotiations to raise another $15bn, Bloomberg reported yesterday, citing people familiar with the discussions.
SoftBank formed Vision Fund in 2017, adding debt and equity financing from sovereign wealth funds Public Investment Fund (PIF) and Mubadala Investment Company to contributions from corporates Apple, Foxconn, Qualcomm and Sharp, later expanding the $93m first close to $98.6bn.
The unit has so far invested about $70bn according to Bloomberg, acquiring significant stakes in a range of highly valued online service providers and artificial intelligence companies including Uber, WeWork, Slack, OneWeb, View, Grab and SoFi.
Goldman Sachs, Mizuho Financial Group, Citigroup, Samba Financial Group and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group provided a $3bn capital call facility for Vision Fund last month, but it is seeking additional capital to keep up its investment pace and participate in follow-on deals.
SoftBank Investment Advisers, which manages the fund, has also considered raising more debt financing or requesting that PIF and Mubadala waive their rights to $3bn in annual repayments on a $40.6bn preferred equity loan, according to the sources.
The prospective funding would act as a sort of mezzanine contribution in advance of the close of a second Vision Fund, the sources said, adding that SoftBank has met with existing backers and prospective new investors in recent months.
SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son has touted the possibility that it could add a new Vision fund every two or three years, but Vision Fund is yet to formally reach its $100bn target and there have been reports of friction with some of its larger limited partners.
