SoftBank Group announced plans to issue retail bonds totaling 1 trillion Japanese yen (about 63 billion USD) in what would be the largest ever single corporate bond issuance for retail investors in Japan [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. The bonds will have a seven-year term and a preliminary coupon range of 4.3% to 4.9%. Pricing is expected on September 4, 2026 [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].
The bond proceeds will help meet SoftBank's investment commitments to OpenAI and support expansion of AI infrastructure, including data centers [1, 6, 2, 3, 4, 5]. SoftBank has already committed over 60 billion USD to OpenAI, with plans to invest nearly 65 billion USD by October 2026, partially financed by loans [1, 7, 8, 6, 9].
In addition to the yen bonds, SoftBank is exploring issuing 10 to 20 billion USD of offshore bonds denominated in dollars and euros to refinance a 40 billion USD bridge loan taken earlier this year for OpenAI investments [7, 8, 6, 9]. The company is considering selling 144A format notes to US institutional investors for the first time in over a decade to diversify capital sources [7, 8, 6].
SoftBank has been active in bond markets in 2026, issuing about 678 billion yen of retail bonds in April and June, along with 3.6 billion USD of offshore bonds in April [1, 7, 8, 6]. The company reported a quarterly net profit of 1.83 trillion yen as of March 31, 2026, driven by gains on OpenAI investments [2, 3].
SoftBank also seeks a new 10 billion USD loan with Mizuho Bank leading the arrangement, carrying a margin of about 275 basis points over SOFR to refinance AI investment debt [9]. A SoftBank spokesperson cautioned that "we are considering various options to refinance the bridge loan, but nothing has been decided, including the amount for each" [7]. NLI Research’s Yuuki Fukumoto noted the seven-year term and credit rating pressure mean banks are reluctant to bear risk, so this bond issuance relies more heavily on retail investors [1].
SoftBank holds nearly 90% of Arm and continues to deepen its AI investments. The company is also in talks to acquire a majority stake in robotics startup 1X Technologies as part of its robotics expansion strategy [10, 11, 12].
The new retail bonds are scheduled for pricing on September 4, the next key date in SoftBank's fundraising efforts linked to its AI investment commitments [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].
