US hedge fund Third Point has bought a US$1bn-plus stake in Japanese telco Softbank, its chief executive Daniel Loeb has reportedly said. Loeb was speaking at the Robin Hood Foundation’s investor conference in New York yesterday when he made the…
US hedge fund Third Point has bought a US$1bn-plus stake in Japanese telco Softbank, its chief executive Daniel Loeb has reportedly said.
Loeb was speaking at the Robin Hood Foundation’s investor conference in New York yesterday when he made the announcement. On news of the investment, Softbank’s shares climbed to their highest since 2000 in Tokyo trading, reaching Y8,150 (US$80.5) at the time of publication.
The size of the stake in percentage has not been disclosed, and Softbank declined to comment while Third Point could not be reached. But based on the telco’s current market cap of US$95.67bn, the US$1bn stake would be equivalent to a 1.05% stake.
Loeb controls about 7% of another Japanese giant – Sony. He decided to invest in Softbank, reportedly because he believes in the telco’s long-term value.
The operator has been acquisitive of late. It recently agreed to pay US$1.26bn for 57% of US-based telecoms retailer Brightstar and announced a US$1.53bn deal for a 51% stake in Finnish mobile game developer Supercell.
In July, it also spent US$21.6bn on the takeover of US wireless operator Sprint. Led by billionaire Masayoshi Son, Softbank has been looking to diversify its activities – be they in games, music and video – as the Japanese mobile market has reached saturation.
Y50bn bond
Meanwhile, Softbank has started offering Y50bn (US$494.6m) worth of seven-year notes to redeem earlier bonds and repay some other borrowings.
This 44th unsecured straight corporate bond carries a 1.689% annual coupon and will be offered until 29 November to the general public in Japan.
Mizuho, SMBC Nikko, Daiwa, Nomura and Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley are the underwriters.
In September, Softbank said it was planning to enter into a Y1.98 trillion (US$20bn) loan agreement with 19 banks – one of the largest-ever syndicated facilities in Asia Pacific.
The proceeds of the transaction, which has already received board approval, will predominantly be used to replace the US$13.4bn bridge facility it used to acquire Sprint.
