SoftBank Claws Back into the Black After Historic Losses
SoftBank Claws Back Into the Black After Historic Losses
AdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTYou have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load.Asset sales and a hot stock market have helped fuel a rebound for the beleaguered Japanese conglomerate, which runs the world’s largest tech fund.Masayoshi Son, SoftBank’s chief executive, has said he has a 300-year vision for the company, which includes investing in emerging technologies like artificial intelligence.Credit...Kim Kyung Hoon/ReutersAug. 11, 2020TOKYO — Just four months ago, Masayoshi Son, the daring billionaire who leads the Japanese conglomerate SoftBank, looked as if he might lose it all.His company had just announced one of the largest annual losses of any firm in the history of corporate Japan. And tens of billions of dollars in investments he had made in high-tech industries like ride-sharing and hospitality looked set for even more devastating losses as the coronavirus pandemic limited the movement of much of humanity.But on Tuesday, SoftBank declared a seemingly miraculous turnabout: It announced that it had already swung back into the black, posting a $12 billion net profit for the three months that ended in June.A potpourri of factors pushed SoftBank back into profitability, including aggressive asset sales, successful initial public offerings by firms in which it has invested and stock prices for its publicly traded companies that have seemingly been divorced from the reality of a cratering global economy. Some of those companies are trading at higher levels than they were before the pandemic.The whiplash change in fortune, more rocket launch than roller coaster, highlights the volatility of financial markets in the era of the coronavirus. It also shows how a company like SoftBank, which has used its $100 billion Vision Fund to become the world’s largest investor in tech companies, can find its strategies disrupted or catapulted by short-term market trends.Speaking on a video chat with investors and reporters on Tuesday, a somber Mr. Son said his company had retrenched and was preparing for a long and difficult battle with Covid-19, which he said would make it difficult to predict SoftBank’s performance.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe.AdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENT