Softbank is reportedly considering launching a third Vision Fund, a source has told Reuters.
In Brief:
The fund is likely to use Softbank’s own capital and be restructured since the performance of the previous fund has been “disappointing”.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister Liz Truss is said to be persuading SoftBank to list its tech firm in the UK.
The technology based firm Arm, which designs chips, is expected to be listed by SoftBank in the near future.
What does this mean?
These stories bring together the challenges of supporting startups in a changing economic environment, and of scaling businesses here in the UK. The Vision Fund, which will invest money into startups with a current focus on AI, is said to be one of Founder Masayoshi Son’s “several possible priorities” for spending, according to Bloomberg, while Cambridge-based Arm is said to have been considering listing in London and it will be a priority for the new Prime Minister to keep fast-growing businesses in the UK as so many of their counterparts end up listing in the US market.
