SoftBank Group has launched a large-scale global bond offering to raise funds for a follow-on investment in OpenAI. The offering consists of $10 billion in dollar-denominated senior unsecured bonds and 1 billion euros in euro-denominated bonds. Although the two currencies cannot simply be added together, the amount raised is well over $10 billion when converted to U.S. dollars.
The primary use of the funds raised is the third installment of $10 billion for a follow-on investment in OpenAI, which is scheduled to be completed by October 1, 2026. I plan to use the rest for general business purposes. The bond price is set for September 24, and settlement is scheduled for September 29, so the funds will come in just before the investment payment is due.
This transaction is not so much a case of SoftBank deciding to make a new $10 billion investment in OpenAI, but rather a financial transaction that demonstrates how it plans to raise the final $10 billion of the previously announced $30 billion follow-on investment. The final cost of the funding will not be determined until the terms of the offering and the settlement are finalized.
| Dollar-denominated bonds and euro-denominated bonds were divided into five categories
According to the investor prospectus, the $10 billion in dollar-denominated bonds is divided into three tranches with maturities of 3 years and 6 months, 5 years and 6 months, and 7 years and 6 months. The 1 billion euro bond offering consists of two tranches: a 4-year and a 6-year tranche. All are senior unsecured bonds, meaning they are issued based on the company’s general creditworthiness without being backed by specific assets.
By dividing the debt into various maturities, we can reduce the burden of having all redemptions occur at once and attract different types of investors. Taking advantage of both the dollar and euro markets at the same time can also be seen as a strategy to diversify funding sources rather than relying on just one market.
Citigroup and JPMorgan are serving as lead underwriters. However, the fact that the offering has begun is different from the fact that the final terms have been finalized. The issue amount for each maturity, the coupon rate, the issue price, and the size of investor orders must be confirmed after the pricing process is complete.
| The final installment of the previously promised $30 billion investment
In February 2026, SoftBank announced an agreement to invest an additional $30 billion in OpenAI. The investment is scheduled to be paid in three installments of $10 billion each on April 1, July 1, and October 1, and the first two payments have been confirmed by the company’s official announcements.
According to official SoftBank data, once the $30 billion investment is fully completed, the cumulative investment in OpenAI is expected to reach $64.6 billion, with SoftBank’s stake reaching approximately 13%. This is the company’s projection, based on the assumption that the conditions for closing the transaction are met and the final payment is completed.
Therefore, even though this bond issuance is large in scale, the investment decision itself is not being disclosed for the first time. The change is that, ahead of the October payment, they have entered the specific funding phase of converting short-term loans from financial institutions into long-term funds from the bond market.
| A Structure for Converting a Bridge Loan into a Bond
In March 2026, SoftBank entered into an unsecured bridge loan agreement with a total limit of $40 billion to fund a follow-on investment in OpenAI and for general corporate purposes. A bridge loan is a temporary form of financing in which funds are borrowed for a short period to complete a large-scale transaction first, and then repaid with other funds, such as proceeds from asset sales or long-term debt.
In a disclosure on September 9, the company stated that it had withdrawn $30 billion as of that date and announced on September 15 that it would make an early repayment of the remaining $25.9 billion in full. The terms of this bond offering state that the $10 billion in bridge financing, which had been arranged for the OpenAI investment, will be canceled and replaced with the bond issuance.
For this reason, it may not be accurate to interpret the total amount of bonds issued as net additional debt that is simply added to existing debt. The final change in net debt can only be assessed by considering the bond settlement, the withdrawal and cancellation of bridge financing, and the use of cash on hand together in the next financial disclosure.
| A Choice to Further Increase the Focus on AI Investments
SoftBank's follow-on investment plan is a strategy of concentrating a very large amount of capital solely on OpenAI. In February 2026, the company announced that, including previous investments, it had already invested $34.6 billion in OpenAI since September 2024, and projected that the cumulative total would rise to $64.6 billion once the follow-on investment is completed.
The growth of AI model companies could drive demand for data centers, semiconductors, power, and networks, aligning with SoftBank’s AI infrastructure strategy. Conversely, the impact of OpenAI’s enterprise value and business performance on SoftBank’s asset value and profit and loss will also grow. SoftBank explained that it plans to value its stake in OpenAI at fair value on a quarterly basis and reflect any changes in value in its investment gains and losses.
In other words, this funding round isn't simply a transaction to secure cash; it's a decision that further strengthens the link between SoftBank's financial structure and the performance of its AI investments. While strong investment performance can increase the value of assets, volatility may also increase if there is a decline in valuation or a delay in recovering the investment.
| Benefits of Diversifying Maturities and the Burden of Interest and Exchange Rates
Replacing a bridge loan with a long-term bond could alleviate the pressure to repay the loan within a short period. The fact that the maturities range from 3 years and 6 months to 7 years and 6 months also helps spread out the repayment burden across specific years.
Instead, you have to pay interest on the bond for the remainder of its term. Since the funding is in dollars and euros, the impact of exchange rate fluctuations may vary depending on the currency composition of SoftBank’s revenue and assets, as well as its hedging strategy. To calculate the actual cost, we need the final interest rates and hedging terms, which have not yet been disclosed.
SoftBank announced that it will maintain its existing financial policy of keeping the loan-to-value (LTV) ratio—calculated by dividing adjusted net interest-bearing debt by the value of assets held—below 25% under normal market conditions, with an upper limit of 35% in emergency situations. However, it remains to be seen from the next earnings report to what extent this principle will be upheld following this transaction.
| Key Points to Note in This Bond Offering
The significance of this transaction lies in the fact that the AI company is raising $10 billion directly from the global public bond market and plans to convert short-term loans into dollar- and euro-denominated bonds with various maturities. It also serves as an example of how the competition for AI investment has expanded beyond technology development and data center construction to the large-scale capital markets.
What has been finalized so far are the issuance amounts for each currency, the maturity structure, the intended use of the funds, and the planned schedule. The price determination on September 24, settlement on September 29, and the closing of OpenAI’s third round of funding on October 1 are still in the planning stages. SoftBank was unable to respond immediately to Reuters’ request for confirmation because it was a Japanese public holiday.
Going forward, we’ll need to monitor the final coupon rate, the allocation of the issuance amount, investor demand, the actual cancellation details of the bridge financing, and whether the third installment has been paid in full. Going forward, changes in net debt, interest expense, and the fair value of the OpenAI stake as reflected in the financial statements will also serve as criteria for assessing the actual financial burden of this funding round.
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#SoftBank #OpenAI #AI Investing #Bond Issuance #Dollar Bonds #Eurobonds #Bridge Loan #AI Infrastructure #AI Industry #Global Finance #Corporate Finance #Semiconductor Infrastructure
