SoftBank Group is returning to the overseas bond market for the second time this year amid an aggressive fundraising push for artificial intelligence, led by its bet on OpenAI.
The Japanese technology investment giant is looking to raise about $1.5 billion to $2 billion in the dollar debt market, and about €500 million ($580 million) from euro-denominated notes, according to people familiar with the matter.
A spokesperson for SoftBank said the bond deal size hasn’t been finalized, declining to comment further.
With a heavy emphasis on new AI investments, SoftBank’s billionaire founder Masayoshi Son has pledged as much as $500 billion for a project known as Stargate and announced a planned $30 billion stake in OpenAI earlier this year. Japanese companies have sold a record amount of overseas bonds this year, topping $100 billion, as they step up acquisitions and higher yen debt yields spurs caution in the local market.
SoftBank has raised at least $24 billion in loans and bonds so far in 2025, in one of the biggest-ever funding pushes by the company, compiled data show.
During a global investor call Tuesday, SoftBank’s management said the firm still plans to complete a $30 billion investment tranche in OpenAI by year-end, without providing a more specific timeline and declining to disclose its current stake in OpenAI, according to people familiar with the matter.