Latest news with #VisionFund
AU Financial Review
2 days ago
- Business
- AU Financial Review
Lex Greensill ‘slippery and prone to lying', court told
London | The former head of SoftBank's Vision Fund described financier Lex Greensill as 'slippery and prone to lying', according to correspondence disclosed in a complex $US440 million London court battle between the Japanese conglomerate and a fund of the defunct bank Credit Suisse. Rajeev Misra made the comment in an email to a colleague at SoftBank, whose funds were a big investor in Lex Greensill's eponymous lending company before its collapse in 2021 triggered a sprawling political and financial scandal.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Vision Fund Citizen Committee has nominated 14 future projects
Rapid City, S.D. (KELO) — 14 out of 29 projects have been nominated by Rapid City's Vision Fund Citizen Committee. They have a budget of $12 million and will now await the City Council's decision. 45 citations issued for long vehicles parked downtown The Civic Center, now named The Monument, the BMX Park upgrades, and the South and West Community Gym Centers are just a few of the over 100 projects that have been funded through the Vision Fund. The current Citizens Committee was tasked with allocating just over $12 million, with the 29 applicants requesting more than $74 Million in Vision Fund allocations. 'All of these projects, and I can't stress this enough, all of these projects are sensational. They all would have a significant impact on our community and I wish we could fund them all. I wish the mayor would give me $74 million. We did the absolute best I think we could do,' Citizens Committee Chairman John Kaiser said. This committee was formed around mid-spring and were able to tour and discuss these projects thoroughly. 'Great Vision Fund Committee as well as city staff that provided support and really all of the city staff support altogether. You see a lot of parks projects, a lot of sports projects meeting a lot of needs throughout the city. I think it hits the heart and attention of what we wanted for this and so I'm very pleased,' Rapid City Mayor Jason Salamun said. Sports projects were highly requested with over 30% being in that category. 'I think that when you look at sports as a whole, whether it's like the skateboarding, which is something completely unique, or baseball or soccer or whatever, it was just for us as a committee, those were the ones we felt were also in the scope of what citizens should recommend,' Kaiser said. One project request that was not recommended was a new indoor sports complex. That project requested $10 million, as new facilities for athletes are needed in town. This nomination list will now rest in the hands of the Rapid City Council after the Vision Fund Citizens Committee's presentation on Monday night. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Time of India
17-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
ByteDance aims to match Meta sales in 2025 as TikTok gains steam
ByteDance is targeting revenue growth of about 20% in 2025 despite a potential global economic downturn , a pace of expansion that could help it match Meta Platforms 's global business. TikTok 's owner expects sales to increase to roughly $186 billion from $155 billion in 2024, people familiar with its finances said. That caps years of 20%-plus growth and would take the Chinese internet leader to just a whisker below Meta's projected revenue of about $187 billion this year. ByteDance now claims more than 4 billion monthly active users for its suite of apps, in the ballpark of Meta's, the people said, asking to remain anonymous discussing private projections. TikTok's dizzying ascent has come under the spotlight since the Biden administration led an effort to ban the Chinese-owned social media phenom from the US, citing national security concerns. Trump in turn is giving ByteDance time to strike a deal to sell TikTok — a months-long process that's already drawn interest from the likes of Inc. to Oracle Corp. Despite the threat of a US shutout, ByteDance's international business has soared as TikTok expands globally. While its envisioned 2025 growth rate is down slightly from last year's 29%, that target may shift as executives get a better sense of the business. A ByteDance spokesperson didn't respond to requests for comment. SoftBank Group 's Vision Fund revalued the company to north of $400 billion last year, in part because of its growing presence in generative AI . Fidelity Investments and T. Rowe Price Group Inc. have also marked up ByteDance, valuing it at above $410 billion and $450 billion, respectively, Bloomberg News has reported. Still, growth overall for the startup slowed sharply from 2023. Its flagship Chinese video platform Douyin is grappling with waning consumption and advertising spending across the world's second-largest economy. TikTok — a near-identical replica of its Chinese cousin — has in the meantime taken up more of the burden for topline growth.
Japan Times
14-05-2025
- Business
- Japan Times
SoftBank profit doubles as AI demand boosts chip sales and startups
SoftBank reported a 124% jump in quarterly profit on resilient AI demand that's supporting startup valuations and chip unit sales, a boost to its aggressive data center investment plans. The Tokyo-based company reported net income of ¥517.18 billion ($3.5 billion) in its fiscal fourth quarter. It was helped by the Vision Fund, which swung to a profit of ¥26.1 billion mainly on a surge in the value of TikTok owner ByteDance and its strong international sales. The earnings come at a critical juncture for SoftBank as it plans to invest $30 billion in OpenAI while leading a $100 billion foray into building AI hardware in the United States. Maintaining a healthy cash flow and balance sheet is key to securing the billions of dollars needed at minimum cost. They also underscore SoftBank's exposure to the volatile startup market after years of investments through the Vision Fund into hundreds of tech companies. Online video darling TikTok is driving ByteDance's revenue and its valuation, while SoftBank was also helped by share price increases at Didi Global and Auto1 Group. That outweighed declines at baby-products retailer BrainBees Solutions and stock price falls at other publicly listed Indian portfolio companies, such as food-delivery app Swiggy and e-scooter maker Ola Electric Mobility. Global investment in AI computing helped boost sales at SoftBank's chip unit Arm Holdings. For the year ended March, SoftBank earned ¥1.15 trillion in net income, springing back from a loss of about ¥228 billion in the previous year. But growing tech protectionism and the prospect of further U.S. tariffs are weighing on SoftBank's ambitions to become a leader in global AI. "Uncertainty is growing and it's becoming harder to see the landscape ahead,' Chief Financial Officer Yoshimitsu Goto said during an earnings conference. "But SoftBank has not changed course for 44 years. We are not changing now.' SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son and OpenAI co-founder Sam Altman unveiled the U.S.-based Stargate project in January with promises to deploy $100 billion into data centers and other AI infrastructure — and plans to raise that to above $500 billion over time. But that bid to place SoftBank among the leaders in global AI has been stymied as debt investors and bankers reassess the value of data centers. SoftBank has yet to begin detailed discussions on how the large-scale data center rollout will be financed.
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
SoftBank Profit Doubles After ByteDance, Didi Values Surge
(Bloomberg) -- SoftBank Group Corp.'s profit soared 124% after valuations of tech startups like ByteDance Ltd. rose, in a boost for the Japanese company's aggressive data center investment plans. A New Central Park Amenity, Tailored to Its East Harlem Neighbors As Trump Reshapes Housing Policy, Renters Face Rollback of Rights What's Behind the Rise in Serious Injuries on New York City's Streets? NYC Warns of 17% Drop in Foreign Tourists Due to Trump Policies LA Mayor Credits Trump on Fire Aid, Stays Wary on Immigration SoftBank, which on Tuesday reaffirmed plans to invest up to $30 billion in ChatGPT-owner OpenAI, reported net income of ¥517.18 billion ($3.5 billion) in its fiscal fourth quarter. That was helped by the Vision Fund, which swung to a profit of ¥26.1 billion thanks to gains in investees such as ByteDance and China's Didi Global Inc. SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son and OpenAI co-founder Sam Altman unveiled the US-based Stargate project in January with promises to deploy $100 billion into data centers and other infrastructure. That could rise to more than $500 billion over time. Maintaining a healthy cash flow and balance sheet is key to securing the billions of dollars needed at minimum cost. Son and Altman's undertaking however coincides with mounting macroeconomic turbulence. Their bid has been stymied as debt investors and bankers reassess the value of data centers, Bloomberg News reported. SoftBank has yet to begin detailed discussions on how the large-scale data center rollout will be financed. 'Uncertainty is growing and it's becoming harder to see the landscape ahead,' SoftBank Chief Financial Officer Yoshimitsu Goto said during an earnings conference. 'But SoftBank has not changed course for 44 years. We are not changing now.' He said it wasn't true that the Stargate endeavor has slowed. 'We don't believe the plan has become stuck due to tariffs,' he said. 'What's important is that we bring about each project, one by one.' More broadly, SoftBank's earnings jump reflects its exposure to the startup market after years of Vision Fund investments into hundreds of tech companies. In the March quarter, investors re-rated Chinese firms such as ByteDance that are managing to sustain growth despite economic slowdown back home. Online video darling TikTok has kept up a strong pace of international growth, while SoftBank was also helped by share price increases at Didi and Auto1 Group SE. That outweighed declines at baby-products retailer BrainBees Solutions Ltd. and stock price falls at other publicly listed Indian portfolio companies such as food-delivery app Swiggy Ltd. and e-scooter maker Ola Electric Mobility Ltd. Vision Fund 2, which is backed by SoftBank, logged a $708 million loss, it said. Global investment in AI computing is helping to lift sales at SoftBank's chip unit Arm Holdings Plc and SoftBank is further strengthening its hold on chip technologies Son believes crucial for AI. It's announced a $6.5 billion acquisition for chip designer Ampere Computing LLC, that it expects to close in the second half of the year. For the year ended March, SoftBank earned a ¥1.15 trillion net income, its first profit in four years after springing back from a loss of about ¥228 billion in the previous year. What Bloomberg Intelligence Says SoftBank Group's reported loan-to-value might breach its 25% limit after including the $6.5 billion acquisition cost of Ampere Computing, an investment of up to $30 billion in OpenAI and an additional sum in Stargate, assuming asset values stay unchanged vs. March. LTV had already reached 18% in March from 8% a year ago. It might need to raise more from asset-backed financing or sell assets to manage its balance sheet. — Sharon Chen, BI Credit Analyst --With assistance from Edwin Chan. (Updates with executive comments and analyst commentary.) The Recession Chatter Is Getting Louder. Watch These Metrics US Border Towns Are Being Ravaged by Canada's Furious Boycott Two Million Meat Sticks a Day Isn't Enough for Chomps' CEO Maybe AI Slop Is Killing the Internet, After All With the New York Liberty, Clara Wu Tsai Aims for the First $1 Billion Women's Sports Franchise ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
