SoftBank's $3.7 Billion Sourcing Hit Drags Shares as Malaysia AI Pact Takes Shape

SoftBank Group shares fell 6.0% on Monday, with Reuters attributing a substantial share of the decline to charges tied to revised procurement plans disclosed alongside the company's latest earnings. The stock was quoted at EUR 21.39, and the drop came against a soft backdrop for Asian AI-related equities, where jitters over Nvidia's leadership and a broader cooling in the sector added to the pressure.

The charge in question — ¥597.2 billion, or roughly $3.7 billion — stemmed from changes to procurement arrangements for power generation equipment at US AI data centers. According to the company, the losses arose on non-refundable advance payments. The write-down was folded into the quarterly loss SoftBank reported on Tuesday.

A Swing to Loss as Revenue Grows

For the three months through the end of September — the second quarter of fiscal 2026 — the group posted a net loss of ¥1.12 trillion, a sharp reversal from the ¥2.5 trillion profit booked a year earlier. The result fell short of expectations. Revenue, by contrast, advanced 16% to ¥2.2 trillion.

Losses on Intel-related derivatives also weighed on the bottom line, according to media reports. Commentary published after the numbers pointed to rising financing costs and the scale of SoftBank's AI infrastructure spending as additional sources of concern.

Malaysia Venture Comes With Strings Attached

Separately, SoftBank unveiled plans on Tuesday to build out AI infrastructure in Malaysia alongside Grab Holdings and Petroleum Sarawak Berhad, known as PETROS. The proposed joint initial capital for the infrastructure projects totals $1.85 billion, with SoftBank's own intended contribution set at $1 billion.

The development agreements, signed on Monday, provide for the capital to be deployed in stages, contingent on milestones and closing conditions. In other words, the arrangements cover joint development of the planned projects rather than a single upfront outlay — SoftBank's share is neither unconditional nor payable all at once.

China Carve-Out Under Discussion for ABB Robotics

Elsewhere, SoftBank and ABB are examining a revised structure for SoftBank's planned purchase of ABB's robotics unit. Reuters reported on Saturday that the two sides were weighing a carve-out of the Chinese operations from the $5.4 billion transaction after Beijing blocked the takeover.

ABB said on November 5 that China's state planning authority had informed SoftBank it would not permit the acquisition. SoftBank, for its part, said Chinese authorities had prohibited the purchase of ABB's robotics business in China and that it was in talks with ABB on the matter. The carve-out remained a subject of reported deliberation and was not announced as a completed change.