SoftBank investors prioritize AI returns over borrowing costs
Shareholders are looking past a record junk bond sale and rising credit risk to focus on the company's massive bet on OpenAI
SoftBank Group just borrowed $11.1 billion at yields as high as 9.75%. Its equity investors are mostly shrugging.
The reason is simple. Shareholders care far more about what SoftBank’s artificial intelligence bets could be worth than about what it costs to fund them. With nearly $65 billion committed to OpenAI, the company has made its position very clear.
A record bond sale with a clear purpose
On September 24, 2026, SoftBank closed a high-yield corporate bond sale worth $11.1 billion. The deal combined $10 billion in dollar-denominated senior notes with ā¬1 billion in euro notes, making it the largest transaction of its kind globally.
Demand was not a problem. Orders topped $30 billion, meaning buyers asked for nearly three times what SoftBank was offering.
Most of that money has a specific destination. The proceeds are aimed largely at completing SoftBank’s investment in OpenAI and refinancing existing obligations.
SoftBank’s total commitment to OpenAI stands at approximately $64.6 billion. The final tranche is expected to close around October 1, 2026, and the company is anticipated to hold a 13% stake in the ChatGPT maker once everything settles.
The cost of borrowing is climbing
Yields of up to 9.75% are the kind usually reserved for companies the market considers risky, and SoftBank’s credit rating sits in speculative territory.
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Five-year CDS spreads on SoftBank debt have pushed above 400 basis points. Put plainly, protecting yourself against a SoftBank default now costs more than 4% of the insured amount each year.
SoftBank reported net debt of Ā„10.8 trillion at the end of June 2026. The company maintains a self-imposed loan-to-value ratio below 25%, meaning its net debt stays under a quarter of the value of the assets it holds.
Why shareholders are looking past it
SoftBank shares have been volatile but remain approximately one-third higher than a year ago.
Chief Financial Officer Yoshimitsu Goto has laid out the logic behind the approach. SoftBank prefers to borrow against its holdings rather than sell them, prioritizing long-term value through asset appreciation over the immediate pressures of raising cash.
A familiar playbook from Masayoshi Son
Under founder Masayoshi Son, the company has long pursued a high-risk, technology-driven investment strategy. The current focus is AI across multiple layers: models, chips, and robotics. Rather than selling appreciating positions to fund new ones, SoftBank has repeatedly turned to both secured and unsecured debt.
The September deal was not even the company’s first record bond issuance this year. SoftBank already set a record earlier in 2026, again to fund additional stakes in technologies it views as transformative.
What this means for investors and the AI trade
For equity holders, the setup is a classic leverage trade. If AI valuations keep climbing, debt-funded stakes in OpenAI and Arm could amplify returns well beyond what an unlevered investor would capture.
OpenAI is a private company, so the value of SoftBank’s position depends on private market marks rather than a daily stock price. That makes monetization the key question for anyone watching the debt pile.
The near-term marker to watch is the final OpenAI tranche, expected around October 1. Beyond the closing date, investors will likely keep an eye on the trajectory of SoftBank’s CDS spreads, whether the loan-to-value ratio stays below its 25% ceiling, and any signals on how OpenAI’s valuation evolves.