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SoftBank Group Posts ¥1.12 Trillion Loss as Investments Reverse
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SoftBank Group reported a ¥1.12 trillion net loss attributable to owners of the parent for the three months ended September 30, 2026, reversing a ¥2.50 trillion profit a year earlier, even as net sales reached ¥2.22 trillion. The November 10, 2026 results showed investments swinging to a loss, while procurement and financing costs added pressure.
Total investments moved to a ¥133.6 billion loss from a ¥3.44 trillion gain a year earlier. The holding-company investment business and other investments posted losses, while the Vision Funds’ consolidated investment gain slowed sharply. Quarterly finance cost rose to ¥461.9 billion.
The operating businesses delivered growth during the six months. SoftBank segment net sales rose 11.7%, and segment income increased 12.9% to ¥668.0 billion. AI Computing sales increased 35.5% in yen, but its segment loss widened to ¥322.1 billion as research and development and share-based compensation costs increased at its semiconductor businesses.
Procurement and Financing Costs Deepen the Loss
A ¥597.2 billion loss in the six-month accounts came after Silver Bands 7, a subsidiary in which SoftBank Group and SVF2 have invested, realigned procurement plans for power-generation equipment for U.S. AI data-center projects. The company’s accounting presentation attributed the change to evolving requirements at existing and planned projects, including Ohio’s PORTS-Pike Technology Campus. The loss covered non-refundable advance payments and contract modifications and settlements.
Silver Bands 7 also gained conditional rights to rebates on future equipment purchases. No asset was recognized for those rights at September 30, 2026, because the amount could not be determined.
SoftBank attributed higher half-year interest expense at the parent and related financing entities to larger borrowing and corporate-bond balances, higher funding rates and recognizing all remaining unamortized bridge-loan costs after early repayment.
Vision Funds Public Holdings Decline
On the fund managers’ gross fair-value basis, before fees, expenses and taxes, the combined Vision Funds gained $0.6 billion in the quarter. Private investments contributed $1.4 billion, while public investments lost $0.9 billion. ByteDance and Fanatics supported private valuations, while Coupang weighed on public holdings.
SoftBank recorded no OpenAI investment gain or loss for the half-year because its valuation was unchanged from March 2026. SoftBank said an additional $10 billion invested on October 1, 2026 completed its follow-on commitment, taking cumulative OpenAI investment to $64.6 billion and its ownership interest to approximately 13%.
Investment Outflows Depend on Financing
For the six months, investing activities used ¥5.37 trillion, primarily for follow-on OpenAI investments and acquisitions of assets related to U.S. power generation and AI data centers. Financing activities supplied ¥8.05 trillion. Consolidated interest-bearing debt increased by ¥7.91 trillion from March 31, 2026, to ¥32.59 trillion at September 30, 2026.
The quarter shows the financial demands accompanying SoftBank’s AI expansion: operating sales increased, but investment reversals, procurement losses and financing costs produced a substantial bottom-line loss. The central issue for coming quarters is whether operating growth and investment performance can support the larger financing burden created by that expansion.
