SoftBank in Talks for Up to $20 Billion Bond Sale to Refinance Its OpenAI Loan

SoftBank Group is in discussions with investment banks about a bond offering of $10 billion to $20 billion, with proceeds aimed at refinancing an existing loan tied to its investment in OpenAI, according to people familiar with the matter. The potential deal would be one of the largest bond sales in the Japanese conglomerate's history and underscores the scale of SoftBank's financial commitment to the AI sector. The talks follow a separate move announced just days earlier, in which SoftBank plans a record 1 trillion yen, roughly $6.3 billion, retail bond sale in Japan, also earmarked for its OpenAI investment commitments, with those 7-year bonds set to be priced around September 4 with an indicative coupon of 4.3% to 4.9%.

Together, the two transactions reflect a broad push by SoftBank Chief Executive Masayoshi Son to pile into artificial intelligence through increasingly large debt financings.