After WeWork’s fall, what next for SoftBank?
Son Masayoshi is ready to splurge again
“His eyes were very strong. Strong, shining eyes.” So Son Masayoshi explained his decision back in 2000 to invest $20m in a Chinese e-commerce startup founded by Jack Ma. By the time SoftBank, Mr Son’s investment group, finished selling most of its stake in Alibaba earlier this year, it had made $65bn from the gamble. Less successful was the Japanese billionaire’s bet on Adam Neumann, the charismatic founder of WeWork, an office-rental firm that declared bankruptcy on November 6th. SoftBank is estimated to have torched around $14bn backing it.
This article appeared in the Business section of the print edition under the headline “Son rise, Son set”
Business November 18th 2023
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