SoftBank likens itself to a goose laying 'golden eggs' as Vision Fund boasts best results since 2017
(2021/02/08)
- Reference: 1612814584
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2021/02/08/softbank_vision_fund/
- Source link:
SoftBank's Vision Fund, the investment vehicle behind Uber and WeWork, is riding high-flying technology stock, posting its biggest profit for years.
The fund, created by SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son, reported a ¥844.1bn ($8bn) profit in its third quarter ended [1]31 December 2020 [PDF], surpassing record numbers set just a quarter earlier, and its best results since 2017.
[2]
The global ballooning of tech stock, driven by cheap money and pandemic restrictions, is to thank. In particular, IPOs have been a boon, including that of DoorDash, the Vision Fund-backed food delivery service which hit [3]a $72bn valuation last December despite posting heavy losses.
Softbank confirms talks to offload Arm as it posts rebound profit [4]READ MORE
[5]
It's been quite a turnaround. Less than a year ago, the $100bn Vision Fund said it expected losses for FY2019 of ¥1.8 trillion ($16.7bn). [6]At the time , the Japanese company said the losses would be the result of "a decrease in the fair value of investments due to the deteriorating market."
At that point, investment in office-sharing platform WeWork did not seem so smart as the world started to work from home.
[7]
This quarter's financial motif, according to Softbank. Click to enlarge.
In the latest financials, Masayoshi Son's laboured metaphor about SoftBank's ability to continue offering more [8]golden eggs for the investment world [9]prompted some derision on Twitter, as did his promise that business would recover from the decimating impact of the pandemic [10]like some sort of winged horse .
It's Softbank Slides Day again today [11]pic.twitter.com/aTxGkueAqC — Jacky Wong (@jackycwong) [12]February 8, 2021
The company's golden touch was not quite universal, though. SoftBank posted a ¥285bn ($2.7bn) loss on derivatives, which helped create an overall loss in asset management of ¥113.5bn ($1.1bn).
It remains to be seen whether the Vision Fund's good fortune will last long enough to see the founder execute his long-term plan. In 2010, Son [13]told investors that in 300 years SoftBank wouldn't be in the mobile phone business: it would be a telepathy service provider.
[14]
This is ridiculous, of course, but we can tell you were thinking that already. ®
Get our [15]Tech Resources
[1] https://group.softbank/system/files/pdf/ir/financials/financial_reports/financial-report_q3fy2020_01_en.pdf
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_emergent_tech/artificial_intelligence&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2YCHCh8gLlOiZdjG@R8n8OwAAAJc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[3] https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/door-dash-ipo-is-most-ridiculous-of-2020-and-holds-no-value-analyst-125054305.html
[4] https://www.theregister.com/2020/08/12/softbank_q2_2021/
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_emergent_tech/artificial_intelligence&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33YCHCh8gLlOiZdjG@R8n8OwAAAJc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2020/04/14/secondwave_dotcom_uberinvestor_softbank_forecasts/
[7] https://regmedia.co.uk/2021/02/08/goose.jpg
[8] https://group.softbank/en/ir/presentations
[9] https://twitter.com/peter_tl/status/1358731396584513536
[10] https://twitter.com/jackycwong/status/1358603995518959616
[11] https://t.co/aTxGkueAqC
[12] https://twitter.com/jackycwong/status/1358603995518959616?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
[13] https://qz.com/1112317/softbank-ceo-masayoshi-son-gave-a-2010-investor-presentation-explaining-his-tech-vision/
[14] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_emergent_tech/artificial_intelligence&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44YCHCh8gLlOiZdjG@R8n8OwAAAJc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[15] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
The fund, created by SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son, reported a ¥844.1bn ($8bn) profit in its third quarter ended [1]31 December 2020 [PDF], surpassing record numbers set just a quarter earlier, and its best results since 2017.
[2]
The global ballooning of tech stock, driven by cheap money and pandemic restrictions, is to thank. In particular, IPOs have been a boon, including that of DoorDash, the Vision Fund-backed food delivery service which hit [3]a $72bn valuation last December despite posting heavy losses.
Softbank confirms talks to offload Arm as it posts rebound profit [4]READ MORE
[5]
It's been quite a turnaround. Less than a year ago, the $100bn Vision Fund said it expected losses for FY2019 of ¥1.8 trillion ($16.7bn). [6]At the time , the Japanese company said the losses would be the result of "a decrease in the fair value of investments due to the deteriorating market."
At that point, investment in office-sharing platform WeWork did not seem so smart as the world started to work from home.
[7]
This quarter's financial motif, according to Softbank. Click to enlarge.
In the latest financials, Masayoshi Son's laboured metaphor about SoftBank's ability to continue offering more [8]golden eggs for the investment world [9]prompted some derision on Twitter, as did his promise that business would recover from the decimating impact of the pandemic [10]like some sort of winged horse .
It's Softbank Slides Day again today [11]pic.twitter.com/aTxGkueAqC — Jacky Wong (@jackycwong) [12]February 8, 2021
The company's golden touch was not quite universal, though. SoftBank posted a ¥285bn ($2.7bn) loss on derivatives, which helped create an overall loss in asset management of ¥113.5bn ($1.1bn).
It remains to be seen whether the Vision Fund's good fortune will last long enough to see the founder execute his long-term plan. In 2010, Son [13]told investors that in 300 years SoftBank wouldn't be in the mobile phone business: it would be a telepathy service provider.
[14]
This is ridiculous, of course, but we can tell you were thinking that already. ®
Get our [15]Tech Resources
[1] https://group.softbank/system/files/pdf/ir/financials/financial_reports/financial-report_q3fy2020_01_en.pdf
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_emergent_tech/artificial_intelligence&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2YCHCh8gLlOiZdjG@R8n8OwAAAJc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[3] https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/door-dash-ipo-is-most-ridiculous-of-2020-and-holds-no-value-analyst-125054305.html
[4] https://www.theregister.com/2020/08/12/softbank_q2_2021/
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_emergent_tech/artificial_intelligence&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33YCHCh8gLlOiZdjG@R8n8OwAAAJc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2020/04/14/secondwave_dotcom_uberinvestor_softbank_forecasts/
[7] https://regmedia.co.uk/2021/02/08/goose.jpg
[8] https://group.softbank/en/ir/presentations
[9] https://twitter.com/peter_tl/status/1358731396584513536
[10] https://twitter.com/jackycwong/status/1358603995518959616
[11] https://t.co/aTxGkueAqC
[12] https://twitter.com/jackycwong/status/1358603995518959616?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
[13] https://qz.com/1112317/softbank-ceo-masayoshi-son-gave-a-2010-investor-presentation-explaining-his-tech-vision/
[14] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_emergent_tech/artificial_intelligence&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44YCHCh8gLlOiZdjG@R8n8OwAAAJc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[15] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/