SoftBank selling off most of its Alibaba stake: report

 

SoftBank is reportedly selling almost all of its remaining shares in Alibaba, limiting its exposure to China and raising cash as its tech investments take a hit in a market downturn.

The Japanese group has sold about $7.2 billion worth of Alibaba shares this year, after selling a record $29 billion last year, according to the Financial Times.

The sale will eventually cut SoftBank’s stake to just 3.8%, according to regulatory filings.

FOX Business has reached out to Softbank for comment.

ALIBABA UNVEILS AI MODEL AS CHINA REGULATOR RELEASES NEW RULES

The Japanese investor, led by billionaire founder Masayoshi Son, once owned as much as 34% of Alibaba. 

At the end of February, SoftBank had only 98 million shares of Alibaba left to sell, according to the FT’s estimates. 

The move by Softbank comes as the company plans a major listing of UK chip designer Arm as it seeks to recover from a series of failed investments and unprecedented losses. 

ALIBABA TO SPLIT INTO 6 UNITS, EXPLORE SEPARATE IPOS

The longtime investor is pulling back from Alibaba as the tech company is in the midst of a reorganization preparing to split into six separate entities.

Son bought into Alibaba more than two decades ago with a $20 million investment after meeting founder Jack Ma.

Ma’s history of speaking his mind turned into a liability in October 2020 when he criticized China’s state-owned banks at a financial summit in Shanghai.

JACK MA ENGINEERED ALIBABA’S BREAKUP FROM OVERSEAS

Beijing then suspended the blockbuster IPO of Alibaba’s sister company Ant, as President Xi Jinping launched a campaign to rein in the country’s tech groups.

Since then, Alibaba’s share price has fallen 70%.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
BAB	INVESCO EXCHANGE TRADED FD TR II TAXABLE MUN BD ETF	25.84	-0.10	-0.39%

Alibaba shares closed in New York on Wednesday at $93.84.

They once traded at $317 per share.