SoftBank posts surprise $7bn loss after writing off $3.7bn of US data-centre equipment orders
SoftBank reported a US$8.46B net loss for the July to September quarter, its first loss in nearly two years, against an analyst consensus (LSEG) of a US$646.2M profit, the Financial Times reports.
The biggest hit was a US$4.59B charge on non-refundable advances and modified contracts for US data-centre equipment, which SoftBank put down to "the evolving requirements of its existing and planned projects", including a large development in Ohio. Of $9.5bn paid upfront, about $2.9bn went on equipment it no longer needs; it has conditional rebates of up to $2.1bn on future purchases. A US$2.08B loss on Intel holdings and related derivatives also weighed, while the Vision Funds booked a US$653.8M gain.
Why it matters: this is one of the first hard writedowns on the AI data-centre build-out by a top-tier backer, and it comes from OpenAI's largest investor. SoftBank has committed about $65bn to OpenAI and is expected to join a round that could value it at $1.25tn, but CFO Yoshimitsu Goto said any revaluation waits until that round closes. SoftBank raised a record $56.5bn in the quarter and repaid a $40bn bridge loan mostly used for OpenAI.
What we don't know yet: SoftBank has not named the affected projects beyond Ohio or said whether the changed specs reflect power, chip generations, customer demand or politics, so it is unclear whether this is a one-off re-spec or an early sign of over-ordering across the build-out.
The turbine bet: The Wall Street Journal reports that most of the charge stems from gas-turbine reservations SoftBank placed between late 2025 and early 2026, largely with GE Vernova, to secure power for AI data centres. In all it reserved well over 13 gigawatts of turbines, more than six Hoover Dams' worth, according to people familiar with the orders. That was far more than it needed even after supplying the $33 billion, 9.2GW gas plant it is to build and operate in Ohio next to an 8GW data-centre campus leased to OpenAI. In recent months, as further payments loomed, SoftBank cancelled its excess reservations and unwound some contracts that were further along in the order process. CFO Yoshimitsu Goto rejected Elon Musk's claim on X that SoftBank had defaulted on the orders: "There is no such default." He said the company could not be "all offense" in the current market and needed "to balance between gas and brake". GE Vernova said there was "no negative or positive impact" on it. The subsidiary behind the orders, Silver Bands 7, has made $9.5 billion of advance payments for power projects, according to MarketWatch. SoftBank shares rose 14% in Tokyo after the results.
Sources: Financial Times, 10 November 2026; Wall Street Journal, 10 November 2026; MarketWatch, 10 November 2026
