SoftBank Group Corp. has arranged an $11.87 billion facility to support its investment in OpenAI, according to people familiar with the deal. The two-year loan, finalized last week, drew commitments from roughly 20 banks. SoftBank declined to comment.
This latest borrowing adds to a flurry of financing moves tied to OpenAI. Earlier, the company obtained a $10 billion margin loan using its OpenAI stake as collateral, and it is considering a bond issuance that might total $20 billion, even as concerns about mounting AI-related credit risk build. SoftBank also said last week it will repay the remaining balance on a $40 billion loan taken earlier this year for the OpenAI investment, planning to reduce the outstanding $25.9 billion on Sept. 15. That earlier borrowing was unsecured, with a stated maturity in March of next year.
This week in New York, SoftBank intends to meet prospective investors to gauge interest in a potential US dollar junk-bond sale, and is evaluating a fundraising range of $10 billion to $20 billion for that deal, people said last month. The group, founded and led by Masayoshi Son, intends to put nearly $65 billion into OpenAI by October. Including the new loan, it has raised about $37 billion this year across offshore and domestic bonds and loans, based on Bloomberg data.
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The capital raise lands as some tech leaders call for easing the pace of AI development because of mounting risks. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman told Fortune the company will not pursue a public listing this year while it works through safety considerations. Shares of SoftBank fell as much as 13% on Monday, the most since July 17. For your wallet, the read is straightforward: SoftBank is stacking sizeable, time-limited funding against a massive AI push, which can amplify swings as it executes that plan.
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