SoftBank Group Corp. just struck a $10 billion deal for senior unsecured notes, a move that signals a shift from a bridge loan to a longer‑term funding structure.
The notes are issued in both dollar and euro denominations – $10 billion in USD and €1 billion in EUR – and are sliced across multiple maturities: 3‑1/2, 5‑1/2 and 7‑1/2 years for the dollar side, and 4‑ and 6‑year tenors for the euro side.
Proceeds will largely finance SoftBank’s $10 billion payment for the third tranche of its OpenAI investment, scheduled to close on October 1, and will also be available for general corporate purposes.
Earlier this year, SoftBank secured a $10 billion bridge loan facility to cover the same OpenAI tranche; the new bond issuance will effectively cancel that loan, tightening the company’s balance sheet.
Citigroup and JPMorgan are the lead bookrunners, a pairing that underscores the deal’s scale and the confidence of major banks in SoftBank’s credit profile.
Pricing is set for September 24, with settlement on September 29; investors will watch the spread movement closely as it may influence SoftBank’s cost of capital for future tech bets.
The bond issuance comes at a time when corporate bond markets remain receptive to high‑profile tech investments, but any widening in credit spreads could dampen appetite. SoftBank’s next key milestone is the October 1 tranche closing, which will test the market’s willingness to finance large AI‑sector bets at the negotiated terms.