SoftBank Prepares to Cash In on Long-Held Alibaba Stake
- Japanese firm sold $7.3 billion of Alibaba stake this year
- Early China backers head for exits as Beijing tightens grip
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SoftBank Group Corp. is moving to sell more of its stake in Chinese internet giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., unwinding the bet that spurred the Japanese company’s ambition to invest billions of dollars into startups.
SoftBank offloaded around $7.3 billion in Alibaba shares this year through prepaid forward contracts, according to a Bloomberg analysis of regulatory filings. That follows the company’s sale of shares through similar contracts last year, which had lowered its stake to 13.7% at end-December. These contracts include the option to either hand over the stock or pay in cash and keep the shares.