SoftBank Group Corp.
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Company History
Founded 1981 in Tokyo, Japan
Masayoshi Son was 24 years old and still finishing his Berkeley economics degree when he imported Space Invaders machines from Japan and sold play time to students on his college campus, generating enough cash to fund his return to Japan and his first business venture. He founded SoftBank in September 1981 in Fukuoka, Japan, with two part-time employees and a stated mission to become the largest computer software distributor in Japan within five years. He set the ambition before he had the infrastructure to execute it, a pattern that has characterized every subsequent decade of the company's history. SoftBank became the dominant distributor of PC software in Japan through the 1980s and early 1990s, building the logistics relationships and retail presence that gave Son access to capital and credibility when the internet arrived. The 1995 Yahoo! Investment — Son met Jerry Yang through Masahiro Inoue of Softbank's U.S. Operations and wrote a check that Yang reportedly found surprisingly large for a company with almost no revenue — was made at the precise moment when the web was transitioning from academic infrastructure to commercial platform. Son recognized the transition before most Japanese institutions had acknowledged it. The 2000 investment in Alibaba was similarly timed to a moment of maximum uncertainty. Son met Jack Ma in Beijing before the company had significant revenue, saw a pattern he recognized from the Yahoo! Investment — charismatic founder, addressable market, early in the adoption curve — and invested $20 million. The financial crisis of 2008-2009 nearly destroyed the value of that position before Alibaba's eventual growth justified the bet. The 2006 acquisition of Vodafone Japan for $15.1 billion gave SoftBank the telecommunications infrastructure that now generates the stable cash flows supporting the entire group's leverage structure. Son financed the acquisition with debt that seemed reckless at the time and spent years deleveraging, but the strategic outcome was correct: owning a major Japanese mobile operator gave SoftBank the balance sheet gravity it needed to pursue the Vision Fund vision a decade later.
Masayoshi Son founds SoftBank Corp in Tokyo, Japan, pioneering the software distribution model and beginning the aggressive acquisition of regional technology distributors.
SoftBank makes a $100 million investment in Yahoo!, a decision that ultimately generates returns of over 8,000% and provides the capital required to execute its grand strategic vision.
The company executes the shocking, $136 billion acquisition of Vodafone’s Japanese operations, transforming SoftBank into a dominant national telecommunications operator and securing the physical network infrastructure for the mobile internet revolution.
SoftBank acquires the British semiconductor design firm ARM Holdings for $32 billion, gaining control over the foundational intellectual property of the mobile computing era and securing a perpetual, high-margin royalty stream.
The company launches the $100 billion Vision Fund, capitalized by a commitment from the Saudi Public Investment Fund, transforming SoftBank into the world's largest and most aggressive technology venture capital fund.
SoftBank executes the initial public offering of ARM Holdings on the NASDAQ, establishing a transparent, public market valuation for its most valuable asset and generating proceeds to pay down debt.
SoftBank reported FY2024 net sales of JPY 7.243752T before the FY2025 record-profit year reshaped the current profile.
SoftBank Group reported FY2025 net sales of JPY 7.798650T and net income attributable to owners of the parent of JPY 5.002271T.
To execute a strategic consolidation of the global semiconductor intellectual property market, gaining control over the foundational architecture of the mobile computing era and securing a perpetual, high-margin royalty stream.
To significantly expand the company's national footprint and solidify its position as a top-tier provider to Japanese consumers and businesses during the aggressive consolidation of the mobile internet market.
Since its establishment in 1981, SoftBank Group Corp. expanded from an early-stage venture into a recognized leader in Technology Investment Conglomerate and Telecommunications, overcoming key market challenges.
Over its history, SoftBank Group Corp. executed decisive strategic pivots toward scalable monetization and digital distribution, securing its current market leadership.
By continually modernizing operations and embracing workflow automation, SoftBank Group Corp. maintains resilience through changing technological and economic cycles.