Meesho, India’s largest reselling website, has negotiated a $250 million funding round led by SoftBank’s Vision Fund, the Economic Times has reported. The round, if completed, will value Meesho at between $1.5bn…
SoftBank Value Plummets on Shaky Tech Deals
Japanese giant SoftBank has seen its share price fall sharply today, due to its exposure to continued US-tech selloffs. The company opened trading on Monday 2.6% down, and ended it with a…
SoftBank-backed Zume Cuts Staff, as Japan Investor Rolls Back Startup Ambition
Robotic pizzamaker Zume is laying off half its staff and will stop making pizzas, its co-founder and CEO has announced. Alex Garden said the California-headquartered firm will now concentrate on its packaging…
Investment Giants Eye FINO Stake
Japan’s SoftBank Group, alongside Singaporean state investor Temasek and Morgan Stanley, are considering a 33% stake in Indian fintech firm Financial Information and Network Operations (FINO). The deal, through which the trio…
SoftBank Ponders Massive Telco IPO
Japanese telecommunications giant SoftBank is considering an IPO of its Japanese mobile phone business, in a move that could raise ¥3 trillion ($18bn). The share sale, to take place on the Tokyo…
All Hail the Unicorn Maker: Is SoftBank’s Vision Fund Good for Tech?
Masayoshi Son has always been a bit of a gambler. In 2000, during the first dot com bubble, the 59-year-old SoftBank founder lost a record $70 billion. Undeterred, he continued with his…