SoftBank's Vision Fund just delivered a massive $19 billion gain in Q2, but investors aren't celebrating. The Japanese conglomerate's stock has been hammered over the past week as AI bubble fears grip global markets, wiping out nearly $50 billion in market cap despite the fund's stellar performance.
SoftBank just posted one of its strongest quarters ever, but the market's having second thoughts about the AI gold rush. The Japanese investment giant reported a staggering $19 billion gain on its Vision Fund for the fiscal second quarter ending September 30, more than quadrupling the $4.8 billion gain from the previous quarter.
The numbers tell a tale of two markets. SoftBank's quarterly profit hit 2.502 trillion yen, absolutely crushing analyst expectations of 206.89 billion yen according to LSEG consensus estimates. Revenue came in at 1.92 trillion yen, right in line with forecasts.
But here's where things get interesting. While the Vision Fund was printing money, SoftBank's stock got absolutely demolished last week. Nearly $50 billion in market cap vanished in what became the company's worst weekly performance since March 2020, when COVID first rattled global markets. The culprit? Growing fears that we're witnessing an AI bubble reminiscent of the dot-com era.
"The market is starting to question whether these AI valuations are sustainable," one Tokyo-based analyst noted, watching SoftBank's shares tumble despite the blockbuster earnings. The irony isn't lost on anyone - the very AI investments driving the Vision Fund's gains are now spooking investors about overheated valuations.
The timing couldn't be more dramatic. Just last month, SoftBank reportedly approved its final $2.25 billion tranche to complete its massive $30 billion investment in OpenAI. According to Reuters reporting, this move came with strings attached - the investment could have been slashed to as low as $20 billion if OpenAI hadn't restructured into a for-profit entity by December 31.
OpenAI delivered just in time. The ChatGPT maker recently completed its recapitalization, transforming from a nonprofit into a public benefit corporation called OpenAI Group PBC while maintaining nonprofit oversight. This restructuring likely unlocked significant valuation gains for Vision Fund, contributing to the massive quarterly surge.
