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Technology Stocks : Softbank Group Corp -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: TobagoJack who wrote (5644)	1/28/2001 12:33:13 PM
From: Edwin S. Fujinaka	Respond to of 6018

Jay,...I have to agree that Softbank appears to be running off in all directions and the future is problematic. I too hold a few shares for old times sake to remind me of one of the wildest rides of my investing career. What is mildly amusing is that the stock has doubled in January. That might be construed to be a pretty good beginning to 2001 if you just list stock performance from the beginning of the year <G>. I wouldn't recommend hyping the stock based on January's performance however. If we end 2001 modestly higher from here, that would be ok. The problem now is that any spectacular success in one part of the far flung Softbank Empire can only have a modest impact on the overall finances of the total Company. Only the Yahoos and their stock price seem to be important in determining Softbank's financial standing. I have switched to biotechs and energy for a little excitement and entertainment. Hopefully one of these far flung investments will keep me afloat for another year. My two energy investments, CCO and CSPLF are both mired in litigation in the Courts. Even that can be entertaining, especially if you win.

To: TobagoJack who wrote (5644)	1/28/2001 9:55:00 PM
From: ms.smartest.person	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 6018

Softbank Seeks $4 Billion in Backing For High-Speed Network Investment January 29, 2001 World Economic Forum Softbank Seeks $4 Billion in Backing For High-Speed Network Investment By DAVID PRINGLE Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL Softbank Corp. is seeking to raise between $4 billion and $5 billion (between 4.33 billion euros and 5.41 billion euros) to invest in companies building high-speed Internet networks in Asia. Masayoshi Son, president and chief executive of Softbank, said Saturday that the company is in talks with several other potential investors to add to the $1.05 billion it secured for the new fund from Cisco Systems Inc. in a deal announced last week. The planned size of the fund shows that Softbank's ambitions to build a broad Internet empire remain undimmed despite the dramatic collapse of the market for technology and Internet stocks last year. Softbank, with a portfolio of more than 600 investments in Internet-related companies, has seen its own market value fall by almost 90% from its peak of more than 60,000 yen ($493 or 553 euros) in February 2000. Moreover, the company is seeking to raise funds at a time when most investors are shying away from Internet-related concerns. "We are talking with the major players, in a world-wide sense, who have enough capital and a long-term strategic view," Mr. Son said in an interview on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum's annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland. Mr. Son said he expects Cisco to invest a further $1 billion as long as its first $1 billion makes a good return. Softbank is targeting Asia with the new fund because it believes that within five years the region will account for more than half of the world's Internet users. Mr. Son said the fund, which will be managed out of Hong Kong and Tokyo by Softbank executives, is likely to face little competition because of the retrenchment in the global investment community. "We will have $4 billion to $5 billion ... when the market has little access to capital. We have a strong position," he added. The deal with Cisco last week was an important vote of confidence in Softbank. After a string of successes, such as its early-stage investment in Internet portal Yahoo! Inc., the Japanese company looked as if it had lost its way this past year. Following the deal with Cisco, Softbank's shares surged 32% to close at 6,910 yen in Tokyo on Friday. Although one of the criticisms often leveled at Softbank has been its apparent lack of focus, Mr. Son plans to invest in a further 200 companies each year, expanding the group's portfolio to more than 800 companies in 2001. He said a broad portfolio is key to Softbank's philosophy of creating a global network of companies that can help each other. He also compared Softbank's corporate array to the Web: a system with "no central control, no single brand [nor] very tedious bureaucracy." Although Mr. Son expects the stock prices of Internet-related companies to continue to "wobble a little bit" over the next few years, he is confident the market capitalization of the industry as a whole will grow at least 10 times in the next five to 10 years. Softbank's portfolio already includes major stakes in several Asian Internet companies, including cable operator Asia Global Crossing Ltd. and Internet service provider Korea Thrunet Co. Write to David Pringle at david.pringle@wsj.com1 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- URL for this Article: interactive.wsj.com Hyperlinks in this Article: (1) mailto:david.pringle@wsj.com -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright © 2001 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Printing, distribution, and use of this material is governed by your Subscription Agreement and copyright laws. For information about subscribing, go to wsj.com Posted with permission of wsj.com interactive