SoftBank Group (SFTBF -11.16%) is a Japanese holding company that focuses on investment management. The company was formerly a software distributor but evolved over the years and now invests in public and private businesses through its venture capital funds.
OTC: SFTBF
Key Data Points
It is best known for the SoftBank Vision Fund, the world's largest venture capital fund focused on technology businesses. SoftBank is also one of the largest publicly traded companies in Japan.
Although Japanese, the company manages capital for clients worldwide, including several Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds. The Vision Fund's largest investor is Saudi Arabia, and it has also received investments from Apple (AAPL +0.14%), Qualcomm (QCOM +0.59%), and several other large technology companies.
What companies does Softbank own?
Over the years, SoftBank has invested in many companies in industries such as software, real estate, robotics, telecommunications, e-commerce, finance, and more. It has been a holding company since 1999 and has made some highly successful (and some not-so-successful) investments.
SoftBank was an early investor in Alibaba (BABA +0.69%) and owns stakes in T-Mobile (TMUS +0.03%); Lemonade (LMND +1.36%); and Nvidia (NVDA +1.44%). Here's a list of some of SoftBank's most prominent current investments.
Company | % of Portfolio | Value | Industry |
|---|---|---|---|
T-Mobile | 61% | $15.2 billion | Telecom |
Nvidia | 19.3% | $4.8 billion | AI & Computing |
Symbiotic | 6.2% | $1.5 billion | AI & Robotics |
Inter & CO Inc. | 1.9% | $479 million | Fintech |
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited | 1.8% | $449 million | AI & Computing |
Divest
Telecommunications
It's also worth noting that SoftBank Corporation itself (not the venture funds) operates a rather large communications business with mobile and landline services. It owns several telecommunications brands, including the third-largest wireless carrier in Japan, and spun out from SoftBank Group (the investment arm).
Other publicly traded investments
SoftBank owns minority stakes in many other businesses, some public and some private. Here's a quick rundown of other publicly traded investments listed on SoftBank's most recent regulatory filings.
- Symbiotic (SYM +6.55%) -- 6.2% stake
- Inter & Co. (INTR +1.89%) -- 1.9%
- Nu Holdings (NU +4.00%) -- 1.2%
- Vtex (VTEX -0.39%) -- 1.0%
There are others, including several extremely small positions. SoftBank files a Form 13F with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) every quarter, where the full details of its holdings can be viewed.
Previous SoftBank investments
SoftBank has made plenty of notable investments throughout its history, and it's important for investors to realize that it doesn't still own them all. SoftBank was an early investor in a few prominent companies. Here are some of the most well-known examples.
Uber
SoftBank led a $9 billion investment into Uber (UBER +1.16%) in early 2018, making it the largest shareholder in the rideshare giant. The bank sold $2 billion of Uber shares in early 2021 and reported selling the remainder of its stake in mid-2022.
Alibaba
Alibaba is SoftBank's most successful investment in its history, with the fund acquiring a stake in the business in 2000 for $20 million. When Alibaba went public in late 2014, SoftBank's investment had grown to about $60 billion. However, in mid-2024, SoftBank announced that it had sold substantially all of its Alibaba stake.
Opendoor
SoftBank was a pre-IPO investor in real estate technology platform Opendoor (OPEN -1.42%), investing $400 million in September 2018. The bank exited the investment in mid-2022.
DoorDash
The SoftBank Vision Fund invested $535 million in DoorDash (DASH +1.78%). However, it has mostly exited the investment, reporting a 0.01% ownership stake worth about $3.3 million in its latest regulatory filing.
Cruise Automation
Cruise Automation is an autonomous vehicle technology company that is majority-owned by General Motors (GM +0.17%). Other vehicle manufacturers, including Honda (HMC +0.80%), are also invested in Cruise. SoftBank formerly owned an almost 20% stake, but GM bought out SoftBank's stake in 2022 to increase its ownership.
What companies could SoftBank buy in the future?
SoftBank's investment activity has slowed considerably in recent years. SoftBank has pumped the brakes on investing thanks to a combination of profitability concerns, a lack of suitable investment candidates, and a string of losing investments.
However, we're seeing a resurgence in IPO and venture investing. So, it's entirely possible we'll see SoftBank start making serious investments again.
Venture Capital
AI is a particular area of interest for SoftBank's founder, Masayoshi Son. There have been reports that SoftBank is considering investments in AI startups. Son reportedly aims to raise $100 billion to build a new business that would collaborate with Arm and compete with Nvidia to produce AI chips. Plus, Son has reportedly met with OpenAI's leadership about potentially investing in a separate AI chip venture.
Last but not least, as of 2025, Reuters reported that OpenAI, Oracle, and Softbank had plans to build five new datacenters valued at over $500 billion in project Stargate.
Related investing topics
The bottom line
SoftBank has been one of the most prominent investment managers of the past couple of decades, and for good reason. They've had massive home runs like Alibaba and several notable investments that didn't do well or even resulted in total losses.
As you can see, SoftBank still owns stakes in some well-known companies and is still actively searching for its next opportunities.
FAQ
About the Author
