SoftBank’s huge $100 billion investment fund — the largest tech fund in history — announced its first close today… and it’s huge. The Japanese telecom..<\/b>
\nSoftBank\u2019s huge $100 billion investment fund \u2014 the largest tech fund in history \u2014 announced its first close today\u2026 and it\u2019s huge.
The Japanese telecom giant revealed that its VisionFund has closed an initial commitment of $93 billion from a bevy of high profile backers. They include Apple, Qualcomm, UAE-based Mubadala Investment Company, Saudi Arabia\u2019s PID public fund, Foxconn, and Foxconn-owned Sharp. The plan is for the fund to reach its $100 billion target within the next six months through commitments from other investors.
The fund is committing to a minimum of $100 million deal checks, with a focus on both minority and majority deals with companies that are either private or public.
That leaves plenty of scope to play in, but some color can be found in a statement from Son explaining that the fund aims to develop the next phase of the internet and connectivity worldwide:
In terms of specific areas, SoftBank said its areas of focus include internet-of-things, AI, robotics, infrastructure, telecoms, bio tech, fintech, mobile apps and more.
Given the credentials of the companies backing it and its sheer size, the Vision Fund is unprecedented in tech venture capital and it\u2019 ll be truly interesting to watch how it is deployed.
Well, we can already pick up some clues. The fund has been active, even before this first close. Recent deals include Indian fintech unicorn Paytm, virtual reality Improbable Worlds, China\u2019s Uber killer Didi Chuxing, and global connectivity company OneWeb. Beyond that, there\u2019s been a steady flow of unconfirmed investments linking the fund to companies like WeWork. The party is just getting started.
The announcement of the fund was coordinated alongside U. S. President Donald Trump\u2019s visit to the Middle East, where two of the Vision Fund\u2019s key backers are located. That builds on earlier ties with the White House. Back in December, SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son met with Trump and pledged to invest $50 billion into the U. S. with the goal of creating 50,000 new jobs.<\/p>\n

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Sentiment rank: 1.6<\/div>\n

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