SoftBank Books $3.7B Equipment Loss As AI Procurement Plans Change

SoftBank Group recorded a ¥597.2 billion ($3.73 billion) loss after changing procurement plans for power equipment for US artificial intelligence data centres, according to its 10th November financial report.

The charge contributed to a ¥768 billion loss attributable to the parent company's shareholders for the six months ended 30th September 2026. The comparable profit for those shareholders a year earlier was ¥2.92 trillion. Investment gains also fell, while financing costs rose.

Of the equipment charge, $2.85 billion relates to advances that cannot be refunded. Another $0.88 billion covers changes to contracts and settlements. SoftBank said its subsidiary Silver Bands 7 revised purchases as the requirements of existing and planned projects changed. The dollar figures are the company's conversions in the report.

The subsidiary also obtained rights to as much as $2.1 billion in rebates on future equipment purchases over ten years, subject to conditions. SoftBank had not booked those rights as an asset at 30th September because their value could not yet be determined. They are therefore neither an immediate refund nor a booked offset to the charge.

SoftBank Separates The Charge From PORTS-Pike

SoftBank's earnings presentation explicitly says the $3.7 billion loss is unrelated to PORTS-Pike, the Ohio data centre project being developed by SB Energy. It says remaining equipment will be used for the power project serving PORTS-Pike and other projects. Silver Bands 7 had made cumulative procurement payments of $9.48 billion by the end of September, according to the financial report.

The US Department of Energy's 20th March project fact sheet describes the infrastructure those plans require. It said SoftBank and SB Energy planned 10 gigawatts of new generation, including at least 9.2 gigawatts from natural gas, and that the department was leasing federal land in Pike County to an SB Energy affiliate. Those are the government's announced project plans, rather than evidence that the capacity has been built.

OpenAI Investment And Financing

SoftBank's report says the valuation used for its OpenAI holding was unchanged from the previous financial year end. At 30th September, its cumulative investment was $54.6 billion, including indirect investments and net of disposals, and the holding's fair value was $99.6 billion. A further $10 billion investment in October completed the $30 billion follow-on commitment made in February.

To repay its temporary bridge borrowing early, SoftBank took an $11.87 billion term loan. A wholly owned financing subsidiary increased an existing loan secured on Arm shares by $5 billion. A financing subsidiary received $7.35 billion up front under contracts backed by its Intel shares. The October OpenAI investment was instead funded from foreign currency bond proceeds, according to the report.

Our report on Anthropic's infrastructure commitments examines the separate payment obligations that accompany an AI developer's expansion. Our report on Oracle's bond financing examines the annual interest payments on its five bond series.

A Vision Fund 2 subsidiary separately borrowed $10 billion in August for general corporate purposes. SoftBank guarantees that loan, and a significant decline in the fair value of the referenced OpenAI shares can trigger a requirement for early repayment. Its presentation specifies that the OpenAI shares are not pledged as collateral.