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SoftBank targets $9 billion a year in AI investments as it pursues bigger deals
SoftBank is prepared to commit close to $9 billion a year to investments in artificial intelligence, even as the Japanese technology group retains firepower for larger deals aimed at accelerating what could be its most radical transformation to date.
Founder Masayoshi Son has been outspoken about his belief in AI and the need to reshape the company in the search for businesses that can support the group’s crown jewel, UK-based chip designer Arm, whose valuation has soared since it went public last year.
SoftBank’s spending on investments and commitments has more than doubled to $8.9 billion in the 12 months since Son said the company was ready to go on the “counteroffensive”. SoftBank said it was ready to maintain, or even exceed, the value of the right mega-deal.
“In principle, we will maintain the same kind of trend in terms of the pace of investment activities,” SoftBank Chief Financial Officer Yoshimitsu Goto told the Financial Times. “From now on we want to intensify investments in AI companies.
“The reason we have been keeping our balance sheet at a very safe level is because we would like to be prepared,” he added, “and we would like to be flexible if there is something we would like to move forward with.”
Built son SoftBank from an internet broadband business to a regulated mobile phone network company, snapping up Vodafone Japan and Sprint along the way. He then radically transformed the group into an investment giant with the support of Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi, while also capitalizing on an extremely successful investment in Alibaba.
In his belief that AI will be the source of future growth, the billionaire is trying to reshape SoftBank and its risk-taking Vision Funds to remain relevant in what he considers the next phase of humanity.
However, it faces strong global opposition. Big tech groups like Microsoft, Amazon and Google have committed billions of dollars to partnerships with start-ups building AI models, while top venture capital firms are seeking deals with groups building AI products and applications.
SoftBank has also struggled in recent years with some of its biggest investments, including about $14 billion in WeWork before the desk-rental startup’s bankruptcy.
The group’s balance sheet has been strengthened since those darkest times, and on Wednesday ratings agency S&P upgraded SoftBank back to double B plus, its highest non-investment grade, citing an “improvement in asset quality.” .
This growing strength gives SoftBank the ability to do a large-scale deal, but Goto said he wouldn’t allow his finances to be stretched in that pursuit.
Highlighting a loan-to-value ratio of around 8.5% and a net asset value of ¥27.8 trillion ($180 billion) – driven by Arm – SoftBank’s CFO said it had the balance sheet capacity to do big deals worth tens of billions of dollars. . But he cautioned that investors should not expect SoftBank to fund such moves alone or without resorting to structured or non-recourse financing.
“What [strength] does not mean that we are ready to spend 10 billion dollars, 20 billion dollars, 30 billion dollars. . . this is not something we expect to come off our balance sheet,” he said.
Trading appears to be improving. SoftBank this month led an investment of more than US$1 billion in Wayve, UK self-driving car start-upmarking Europe’s largest AI deal to date.
Son was personally involved in the deal due to its size and the fact that it was an AI-related investment, said Kentaro Matsui, head of new business at SoftBank and managing partner of its Vision Funds.
Goto also outlined some areas he considers ripe for the kind of investment needed to help the AI sector grow and benefit Arm, including power generation and data centers.
But he declined to comment on press reports that Arm and SoftBank were considering producing an AI chip. The group is also in talks to buy another U.K. chip designer, Graphcore, according to a person familiar with the discussions. SoftBank declined to comment.
Having given up on reporting profits more than a year ago, Son is expected to speak at SoftBank’s annual shareholder meeting in June, when Goto suggests he could reveal more details about his AI plan.
For some investors, these plans could divert the group from its core businesses, including Arm and its telecommunications subsidiary SoftBank Corporation.
“If we look at their investments, the volatility is such that it doesn’t matter if they make $10 billion or $20 billion. . . and it will be all or nothing if they bet on AI chips,” said a long-term investor in Tokyo. “Yes, they have Arm and can write big checks, but going from planning to execution will not be easy.”
Inside SoftBank, however, the direction of travel appears set. Their Vision Funds are already a very different beast from the years when they wrote big checks to start-ups. They have increasingly moved from seeking investments to exiting to generate returns, and this generated billions of dollars in sales last year.
As the pace of investment slows, Vision Funds are increasingly becoming integrated into SoftBank, rather than operating as its own fiefdom. Especially because the vast majority of the money left to invest – deposited in the second Vision Fund – belongs to Son.
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The change resulted in increasing role confusion for Vision Fund executives. Last year, SoftBank created a so-called Platform Group, made up of consultants from Vision Funds looking for investment opportunities in AI.
Crucially, these investments are not necessarily made by the Vision Funds, but rather financed through the group’s balance sheet – a decision that is defined by the fact that SoftBank considers the asset to be strategic, rather than an asset that will ultimately be sold for returns. .
“We actually merged and called our international business ‘One SoftBank’ internally as a way to remind ourselves that the goal is to bring money home,” said Alex Clavel, co-chief executive officer of SoftBank’s Vision Funds.
This article has been updated to clarify the size of SoftBank’s investment in WeWork
Video: AI: a blessing or curse for humanity? | FT Technology
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Breakfast on Wall Street: The Week Ahead
The spotlight next week will shift somewhat to the Federal Reserve’s second-quarter earnings season and monetary policy. Market watchers will be treated to results from several major names, including Dow 30 components Goldman Sachs (GS), UnitedHealth (UNH), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) and American Express (AXP), along with streaming giant Netflix (NFLX).
The Fed will still attract some attention as investors will be eager to hear from a packed lineup of central bank speakers just before the policy meeting lockout period.
In terms of the economic calendar, after fifteen days of labor market and inflation indicators, activity data will gain momentum in the form of the latest retail sales and industrial production reports.
Earnings Highlight: Monday, July 15 – Goldman Sachs (GS) and BlackRock (Black). See the full earnings calendar.
Earnings Highlight: Tuesday, July 16 – UnitedHealth (UNH), Bank of America (BAC), Progressive (PGR), Morgan Stanley (IN), PNC Financial (PNC) and JB Hunt Transport (JBHT). See the full earnings calendar.
Earnings Highlight: Wednesday, July 17 – Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), US Bancorp (USB), Morgan Children (KMI), United Airlines (UAL) and Ally Financial (ALLY). See the full earnings calendar.
Earnings Highlight: Thursday, July 18 – Netflix (NFLX), Abbott Laboratories (ABT), Black stone (BX), Domino’s pizza (ZDP) and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM). See the full earnings calendar.
Earnings Highlight: Friday, July 19 – American Express (AXP), Halliburton (THANKS) and Travelers (VRT (return to recoverable value)) See the full earnings calendar.
IPO Observation: Hospital and healthcare clinic operator Ardent Health Partners (TARDT), insurance service provider Twfg (TWFG) and the biotechnology company Lirum Therapeutics (LRTX) are expected to price their IPOs and begin trading next week. The analyst quiet period ends at Rectitude (RECT) to free up analysts to publish ratings.
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Trump shooting: Gold could hit record high, dollar and cryptocurrencies set to jump
Police cars outside the residence of Thomas Matthew Crooks, the suspected shooter at a Trump rally on Saturday, investigate the area in Pennsylvania. Following the incident, one rally attendee was killed, two rally attendees are in critical condition and Donald Trump suffered a non-fatal gunshot wound. The shooter is dead after being shot dead by the United States Secret Service. (Photo by Kyle Mazza/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Investors will initially favor traditional safe-haven assets and may lean toward trades more closely tied to former President Donald Trump’s chances of winning the White House after he survived an assassination attempt, according to market watchers.
“There will undoubtedly be some protectionist or safe-haven flows into Asia early this morning,” said Nick Twidale, chief market analyst at ATFX Global Markets. “I suspect gold could test all-time highs, we’ll see the yen being bought and the dollar, and flows into Treasuries as well.”
Early market commentary suggested Trump’s shooting at a rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday could also prompt traders to increase his likelihood of success in the November election. His support for looser fiscal policy and higher tariffs is generally seen as likely to benefit the dollar and weaken Treasuries.
An indicator of market sentiment heading into the weekend: Bitcoin surged above $60,000, likely reflecting Trump’s pro-crypto stance.
Other assets positively linked to the so-called Trump trade include stocks of energy companies, private prisons, credit card companies and health insurers.
Traders will also be closely watching market measures of expected volatility on Monday, such as those in the tariff-sensitive Chinese yuan and Mexican peso, which have begun to price in the U.S. vote.
Trump said he was shot in the right ear after a shooting at his rally. His campaign said in a statement that he was “fine” after the incident, which prompted him to rush off the stage.
“Currencies will be the first major market on Monday in Asia to react to the weekend’s shots. There’s potential for extra volatility, and getting a clear reading could be especially difficult because liquidity will be hurt by Japan’s national holiday,” said Garfield Reynolds, Asia team leader for Bloomberg Markets Live.
Strategists had already expected a volatile run-up to the election, particularly as Democrats are still agonizing over President Joe Biden’s candidacy after his poor performance in last month’s debate raised questions about his age. Investors were also grappling with the possibility that the election could end in a drawn-out dispute or political violence.
But there is little precedent for events like those in Pennsylvania. When President Ronald Reagan was shot four decades ago, the stock market plunged before closing early. The next day, March 31, 1981, the S&P 500 rose more than 1% and benchmark 10-year Treasury yields fell 9 basis points to 13.13%, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Bond investors should pay particular attention as the attack is likely to boost Trump’s election chances and ultimately lead to concerns about the fiscal outlook, according to Marko Papic, chief strategist at California-based BCA Research Inc.
“The bond market must at some point become aware of President Trump’s greater chances of winning the White House than any of his rivals,” Papic wrote. “And I continue to believe that as his chances increase, so too must the likelihood of a bond market revolt.”
Kyle Rodda, senior financial markets analyst at Capital.com, said he was seeing client flows into Bitcoin and gold following the shooting.
“This news marks a turning point in American policy norms,” he said. “For markets, it means safe-haven trades, but more tilted toward non-traditional safe-havens.”
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Latest Business News Live Updates Today, July 11, 2024
Follow us for stories on Bill Gates, Elon Musk, Mukesh Ambani, Gautam Adani as we bring you everything that’s happening in the business world. Follow the latest gold and silver prices here too. Stay in the know on all things business with us.
Latest news on July 11, 2024: Airtel says its new Xstream Fiber plans bundle over 350 live TV channels (Official Photo) (Reuters) Disclaimer: This is an AI-generated live blog and has not been edited by Hindustan Times staff.
Follow all the updates here:
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Thu, 11 Jul 2024 08:44 PM
Business News LIVE Updates: Decoding Airtel’s new Xstream Fiber packages, finding value with Live TV and OTT
- Airtel confirms to HT that the live TV proposition is being delivered using its DTH network, while the bundled streaming subscriptions are an extension of its Xstream Play platform.
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Thu, 11 Jul 2024 03:58 PM
Business News LIVE Updates: TCS Q1 results meet estimates: Net profit up 9%, ₹10 dividend declared
- TCS’s consolidated revenue rose 5.4% to Rs 626.13 billion in the June quarter. Analysts had expected revenue of Rs 622.07 billion, as per LSEG data.
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Thu, 11 Jul 2024 03:51 PM
Business News LIVE Updates: Indian companies falsified generic Viagra data to get approval, says US FDA: Report
- Synapse Labs Pvt. Ltd may have been used in hundreds of drugs that are still available for sale, the report said.
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Thu, 11 Jul 2024 03:09 PM
LIVE Business News Updates: Namita Thapar’s emotional post on Emcure IPO listing: ‘Mirza Ghalib sums up my feelings’
- Emcure Pharmaceuticals was listed at ₹1,325.05, up 31.45% on the BSE and NSE on July 10.
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Thu, 11 Jul 2024 02:39 PM
LIVE business news updates: Amazon could face investigation over treatment of UK food suppliers, watchdog says
- An Amazon spokesperson said the company has made several improvements for food suppliers since last year’s results.
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Thu, 11 Jul 2024 01:39 PM
LIVE Business News Updates: This Bengaluru company aims to launch a ‘space habitat’ by 2027, in talks with SpaceX
- AkashaLabdhi calls itself a “home among the stars” as it says the company’s area of expertise is signal processing and continuous automation.
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Thu, 11 Jul 2024 01:10 PM
Business News LIVE Updates: Amazon India employees on working conditions: Made to stand for hours, bathroom breaks not allowed
- A survey conducted by UNI Global Union with the Amazon India Workers Association had 1,838 participants who alleged appalling working conditions at Amazon facilities in India.
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Thu, 11 Jul 2024 12:44 PM
LIVE Business News Updates: UK overhauls listing rules in bid to attract IPOs to London: What has changed?
- The new rules allow companies to carry out more activities without putting them to a shareholder vote, the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority said.
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Thu, 11 Jul 2024 12:18 PM
Business News LIVE Updates: Want to send money abroad? Open foreign currency accounts at GIFT City
- Foreign currency accounts will be like a bank account in India, but instead of rupees, you hold foreign currency like US dollars.
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Thu, 11 Jul 2024 11:30 AM
Business News LIVE Updates: First Abu Dhabi Bank denies interest in acquiring stake in Yes Bank: Report
- The report said the Yes Bank stake sale has attracted interest from Japan, including Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc.
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Thu, 11 Jul 2024 11:04 AM
LIVE Business News Updates: TCS Share Price Surges Ahead of Q1 Results: What Brokers Say About the Stock
- TCS Share Price: The stock opened at ₹3,944.65 against its previous close of ₹3,909.90. It then rose 1.8 percent to ₹3,979.90 level.
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Thu, 11 Jul 2024 10:22 AM
LIVE Business News Updates: Reliance Jio IPO listing likely in 2025 at $112 billion valuation: Jefferies
- Jio “could list at a valuation of $112 billion” and add “7-15 percent upside” to Reliance Industries’ share price, Jefferies said.
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Thu, 11 Jul 2024 09:42 AM
LIVE Business News Updates: Yes Bank shares rise after Moody’s revises outlook to ‘positive’ from ‘stable’
- Global rating agency Moody’s has raised its outlook on Yes Bank to positive from “stable” despite expectations of a gradual improvement in its depositor base.
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Thu, 11 Jul 2024 09:16 AM
Business News LIVE Updates: Sahaj Solar IPO opens today: All you need to know before subscribing to the issue
- Sahaj Solar IPO: The block issue aims to raise ₹52.56 crore through issuance of 2.92 million new shares and will close on July 15.
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Thu, 11 Jul 2024 08:40 AM
LIVE Business News Updates: Why Analysts Believe India’s Earnings Season May Disappoint Stock Market Investors
- Investors in Indian stocks hoping for a robust earnings season to justify expensive valuations are likely to be disappointed.
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Thu, 11 Jul 2024 08:35 AM
LIVE Business News Updates: Elon Musk Says Second Neuralink Brain Implant Will ‘Give People Superpowers’ Within a Week
- Elon Musk said Neuralink will make some changes to try to alleviate the problem of its electrode wires retracting from brain tissue.
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Thu, 11 Jul 2024 07:59 AM
LIVE Business News Updates: Apple warns Indian iPhone users of possible Pegasus-like ‘spyware attack’
- In April this year, the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (Cert-In) flagged several vulnerabilities in Apple’s operating system for iPhone and iPad.
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Thu, 11 Jul 2024 07:45 AM
Business News LIVE Updates: US stock markets at record highs led by world’s biggest tech companies
- The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rose 2.4% to a record high after Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. reported strong quarterly revenue.
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News / Business / Latest Business News Live Updates Today, July 11, 2024
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Jio Financial share price: Should you buy this Reliance group stock on Monday ahead of Q1 FY2024 results?
Q1 2024 Results: Jio Financial Share Price will be in focus on Monday as the Reliance Group company has a fixed board meeting on July 15, 2024 to consider and approve the company’s unaudited standalone and consolidated financial results. Trust Group company informed about the Q1 2024 Results date on Wednesday last week via an exchange filing. According to stock market experts, Jio Financial Services Limited is poised to deliver impressive Q1 results for FY25 on solid operating income. They have forecast a healthy QoQ PAT for the company in Q1 FY25.
Jio Financial Services News
Speaking on the Jio Financial Services Q1 2024 results, Manish Chowdhury, Head of Research, StoxBox, said, “We believe Jio Financial Services is poised to deliver impressive results in Q1FY25 aided by its operating income, which is likely to show robust growth driven by strong investment income, which in turn should lead to healthy PAT growth on a sequential basis. Jio Financial Services continues to make strategic moves such as launching digital products and expanding its ecosystem, with a clear focus on future growth. The company has announced plans to introduce products for lending against stocks and mutual funds, leveraging Jio’s large user base, which could be a significant growth driver in the coming quarters.”
“Furthermore, with the NBFC receiving RBI approval to become a primary investment company, Jio Financial Services is well-positioned to unlock value from its investments. Overall, we expect the company to report robust numbers in the upcoming quarter,” the StoxBox expert added.
Jio Financial Stock Target Price
Speaking about the technical outlook of Jio Financial share price, Ganesh Dongre, Senior Manager, Technical Research at Anand Rathi, said, “Jio Financial Services share price is poised to make a fresh high at the ₹260 apiece level. If the stock breaks above this mark, the Reliance Group stock could make a fresh high by touching the ₹290-₹295 zone. Hence, those with Jio Finance stock in their portfolio are advised to stick to the script by keeping a stop loss at ₹205. If the stock breaks above ₹260 decisively, then one can upgrade the stop loss at ₹240 for the near-term target of ₹295.”
On the advice to new buyers regarding Jio Financial stock, Ganesh Dongre said, “New buyers are advised to wait for the breakout. Once the stock breaks above ₹260, one can buy this Reliance Group stock at the short term target of ₹295, keeping a stop loss of ₹240 apiece.”
Disclaimer: The views and recommendations made above are those of individual analysts or brokerage firms, and not of Mint. Investors are advised to consult with certified experts before making any investment decisions.
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