SoftBank Seeks Record $40 Billion Loan to Fund OpenAI Stake
Japanese conglomerate pursues one of the largest corporate loans in history as Masayoshi Son doubles down on AI dominance through unprecedented debt financing.
SoftBank Group Corp. is seeking a loan of up to $40 billion to finance its investment in OpenAI, according to Bloomberg, in what would mark one of the largest corporate loans ever arranged and SoftBank’s biggest-ever dollar-denominated borrowing.
The 12-month bridge loan, underwritten by four lenders including JPMorgan Chase & Co., underscores the staggering capital requirements for securing stakes in leading AI companies as the sector’s investment boom reaches new extremes. SoftBank has already committed $64.6 billion in equity to OpenAI across multiple rounds, giving it approximately 13% ownership—more than any other investor including Microsoft.
Funding the AI Arms Race
The proposed loan would help SoftBank manage liquidity as it deploys capital across an aggressive AI Investment strategy. CNBC reports that SoftBank recently pledged an additional $30 billion to OpenAI as part of a $110 billion funding round announced in February 2026, which valued the ChatGPT maker at $730 billion pre-money—rising to $840 billion post-investment.
To finance these commitments, SoftBank has systematically liquidated major holdings. The company sold its entire $5.8 billion stake in Nvidia in late 2025 and offloaded $12.73 billion worth of T-Mobile US shares between June and December, according to CNBC. It has also taken out loans backed by its stake in chip designer Arm Holdings.
Historic Loan in Context
If consummated, the $40 billion facility would rank among the largest corporate loans on record. For comparison, Verizon secured a $60 billion bridge loan in 2013 to acquire Vodafone’s stake in Verizon Wireless, which CNBC described as the largest-ever for a corporation at the time. The subsequent bond issuance made Verizon the single-largest issuer of outstanding corporate debt, surpassing AT&T.
SoftBank’s loan structure follows a pattern of using short-term bridge financing to smooth capital deployment. In May 2025, the company arranged a $15 billion one-year loan led by Mizuho Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp., and JPMorgan to fund AI investments, with 21 banks participating, according to Bloomberg.
The most indebted company in history was General Electric, which held $550 billion in debt in 2008. SoftBank’s new loan would be structured as bridge financing rather than permanent debt, giving it 12 months to refinance through asset sales or other capital sources.
Son’s All-In Bet on ASI
SoftBank founder and CEO Masayoshi Son has described artificial superintelligence—AI 10,000 times more capable than humans—as arriving within a decade. During a February 2026 presentation, CFO Yoshimitsu Goto stated that 60% of SoftBank’s assets are now “ASI-oriented investments,” according to CNBC.
The strategy has delivered paper gains. SoftBank booked a $4.2 billion gain on its OpenAI investment in the December 2025 quarter, helping offset losses from holdings in Coupang and Didi. For the April-December 2025 period, the total unrealized gain on OpenAI reached $17 billion.
But the leverage has drawn scrutiny. S&P Global Ratings revised SoftBank’s outlook to negative in March 2026, citing concerns that the OpenAI investment—classified among the “weakest credit quality” assets in SoftBank’s portfolio—could pressure liquidity, according to IndexBox.
“OpenAI is a clear leader, with world-class technology and an unparalleled global user base, and we have strong conviction in its continued growth.”
— Masayoshi Son, Chairman & CEO, SoftBank Group
The Circular Financing Puzzle
OpenAI’s $110 billion February funding round included $50 billion from Amazon, $30 billion from Nvidia, and $30 billion from SoftBank. The structure raises questions about circular financing: OpenAI plans to spend an additional $100 billion on Amazon Web Services over eight years and committed to using 3 gigawatts of inference capacity on Nvidia’s systems, Reuters reported.
This dynamic—where infrastructure providers invest capital that flows back as revenue—has drawn Wall Street concern about artificially inflated demand. Nvidia shares declined after the company announced it would prioritize ecosystem investments over shareholder returns.
OpenAI is targeting roughly $600 billion in total compute spending through 2030, down from earlier projections of $1.4 trillion in infrastructure commitments. The company reported operating losses potentially reaching $8 billion in 2025, though revenue hit a $20 billion annualized run rate by year-end.
- SoftBank’s $40B loan would fund equity stakes, not operations—a bet on valuation appreciation
- The loan tenor of 12 months suggests SoftBank expects near-term liquidity events (asset sales or OpenAI IPO)
- At 13% ownership of an $840B company, SoftBank’s stake is theoretically worth $109B against $64.6B invested
- S&P’s negative outlook reflects concern that illiquid AI assets now dominate SoftBank’s portfolio
What to Watch
OpenAI is reportedly preparing for an IPO as early as late 2026, which would provide SoftBank a path to monetize its position or secure permanent financing against public market valuations. The company completed a corporate restructuring in 2025, converting to a public benefit corporation to enable the offering.
Amazon’s $50 billion OpenAI investment includes a $35 billion tranche contingent on either the IPO or achieving artificial general intelligence, according to TechCrunch. That structure suggests major backers view public market access as critical to validating current private valuations.
For SoftBank, the calculus is stark: if OpenAI’s IPO supports an $840 billion valuation, the strategy vindicates Son’s aggressive leverage. If the public market applies a significant discount—as occurred with recent tech IPOs—SoftBank faces refinancing pressure on tens of billions in bridge loans backed by assets that may prove less liquid than projected. The 12-month clock on the new facility starts now.