SoftBank has announced it is considering an initial public offering for its mobile phone unit. SoftBank plans to list its wireless unit in Tokyo and overseas this year and the offering could bring in about CNY 2 trillion (approximately USD 18 billion), the Nikkei reported. Listing the shares is one of the options, but no decision has been made to officially proceed with the IPO, the company said in a statement.
According to the media report, SoftBank wants to apply to the Tokyo Stock Exchange this spring for a listing on the bourse’s first section, as well as seek a listing abroad, perhaps in London. SoftBank will not use the proceeds from the listing to pay its debt, but instead it seeks to invest the money in overseas technology companies.
SoftBank’s domestic mobile business posted revenues of JPY 913 billion for the six months ended 30 September 2017. Sales fell 4.7 percent from a year ago because of upfront investments and discounts designed to lure users. The company, which also offers broadband services, had 32.8 million mobile subscribers.
