AODocs will be working with Softbank. Source: AP

SoftBank-Saudi venture raises $93b for world’s largest tech fund

By | 22 May, 2017

THE world’s largest private equity fund, backed by Japan’s telecommunications and tech investment group SoftBank Group and Saudi Arabia’s main sovereign wealth fund, said on Saturday it had raised over US$93 billion to invest in technology sectors such as artificial intelligence and robotics.

“The next stage of the Information Revolution is under way and building the businesses that will make this possible will require unprecedented large-scale, long-term investment,” the SoftBank Vision Fund said in a statement.

SoftBank CEO, Japanese billionaire Masayoshi Son, revealed plans for the fund last October and since then, it has obtained commitments from some of the world’s most deep-pocketed investors.

In addition to SoftBank and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), the new fund’s investors include Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment, which has committed US$15 billion, Apple Inc., Qualcomm, Taiwan’s Foxconn Technology and Japan’s Sharp Corp.

The new fund was announced during the visit of President Donald Trump to Riyadh and the signing of tens of billions of dollars’ worth of business deals between US and Saudi companies. Son was also in Riyadh on Saturday.

SEE ALSO: Softbank invests $2b in Didi, hopes to close ‘Vision Fund’ with US$95b

After meeting with Trump last December, Son pledged US$50 billion of investment in the US that would create 50,000 jobs, a promise Trump claimed was a direct result of his election win.

The fund may also serve the interests of Saudi Arabia by helping Riyadh obtain access to foreign technology. The Saudi economy has been severely damaged by low oil prices, and policymakers are trying to diversify into new industries.

donald trump masayoshi son softbank japan united states president

Trump and Son speak to the press after meeting at Trump Tower in Manhattan. Source: Reuters

The PIF signaled an interest in the tech sector last year by investing US$3.5 billion in US ride-hailing firm Uber. Saturday’s statement did not say how much the PIF had committed to the fund, but previously, it has said it would invest up to US$45 billion over five years. SoftBank is investing US$28 billion.

SEE ALSO: US office-sharing startup WeWork to receive $3b investment from SoftBank

The new fund said it would seek to buy minority and majority interests in both private and public companies, from emerging businesses to established, multi-billion-dollar firms. It expects to obtain preferred access to long-term investment opportunities worth US$100 million or more.

Other sectors in which the fund may invest include mobile computing, communications infrastructure, computational biology, consumer Internet businesses and financial technology.

The fund aims for US$100 billion of committed capital and expects to complete its money-raising in six months, it said. – Reuters



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