SoftBank Group plans to raise about $11 billion from sales of dollar and euro corporate bonds, with proceeds going largely toward its investment in OpenAI, Nikkei Asia reported.
The bonds are to be issued at the end of September and carry a BB+ rating, according to Nikkei. The newspaper did not name the rating agency. Finer term-sheet details circulating in secondary accounts — including exact dollar and euro splits, bookrunners, and pricing dates — could not be independently verified for this story because the original wire report was inaccessible.
The timing lines up with SoftBank’s next scheduled OpenAI payment. On Feb. 27, SoftBank Group said it would make a $30 billion follow-on investment in OpenAI through Vision Fund 2 in three $10 billion tranches. The third tranche is expected to close on Oct. 1, 2026, Japan time, and SoftBank said that timing could be accelerated if OpenAI lists. SoftBank said the follow-on would first be financed with bridge loans and other arrangements from major financial institutions, then replaced over time with existing assets and other financing.
SoftBank’s February disclosure set the first two closings for April 1 and July 1, 2026, Japan time, and listed a pre-money valuation of $730 billion. The company said the follow-on would bring its expected cumulative OpenAI investment to $64.6 billion and its ownership to about 13%.
On Dec. 31, 2025, SoftBank said it had completed an additional $22.5 billion investment in OpenAI on Dec. 26, 2025, at the second closing of an investment of up to $40 billion committed on March 31, 2025. That earlier round took SoftBank’s aggregate ownership to about 11%, according to the company.
A roughly $11 billion, lower-rated bond sale would show SoftBank using public credit markets to fund a concentrated OpenAI stake as a $10 billion installment comes due. Pricing and demand will test appetite for AI-linked SoftBank paper — and whether the company can term out bank funding while keeping its stated leverage and cash policies intact.