Exiting one of its most lucrative AI bets, SoftBank cashes out its remaining NVIDIA holdings worth $5.83 billion.
SoftBank Group Corp has sold its entire stake in US chipmaker NVIDIA for $5.83 billion, marking a strategic exit aimed at freeing up capital to fund its massive investment in OpenAI and other technology ventures.
The Japanese conglomerate said in its earnings report on Tuesday that it offloaded 32.1 million NVIDIA shares in October. Alongside this, SoftBank also sold part of its T-Mobile stake for $9.17 billion as part of its broader “asset monetisation” strategy.
“We want to provide a lot of investment opportunities for investors while maintaining financial strength,” said Yoshimitsu Goto, SoftBank’s chief financial officer. He added that the recent stake sales were designed to ensure “safe and ready” funding capacity.
According to sources cited by CNBC, the proceeds from the NVIDIA and T-Mobile sales, along with a margin loan on SoftBank’s stake in chip designer Arm, will help finance its $22.5 billion commitment to OpenAI and other projects, including the acquisition of ABB’s robotics unit.
SoftBank clarified that the NVIDIA sale was not linked to any concerns over AI stock valuations. NVIDIA shares fell about 2% on Tuesday following the disclosure.
This marks the second time SoftBank has exited NVIDIA, the firm’s Vision Fund first invested around $4 billion in 2017 before selling the stake in 2019. Despite the latest divestment, SoftBank continues to maintain deep business ties with NVIDIA through its AI and semiconductor initiatives.
