SoftBank said it would sell US cellphone distributor Brightstar
Global Group for an undisclosed price, marking latest asset sale by Japanese
conglomerate to fund a record stock buyback and raise cash.
TOKYO (Reuters) - SoftBank
Group Corp said on Friday it would sell U.S. cellphone distributor
Brightstar Global Group for an undisclosed price, marking the latest asset sale
by the Japanese conglomerate to fund a record stock buyback and raise cash.
SoftBank said in a statement it would sell the firm to a newly formed
subsidiary of private equity firm Brightstar
Capital Partners for cash as well as a 25% stake in the subsidiary.
Brightstar Capital is not an affiliate of Brightstar Global, the statement
said.
The move comes on
the heels of an announcement in late August it was cutting its stake in
wireless unit SoftBank Corp, followed by news this week it was selling chip
designer Arm to Nvidia Corp.
SoftBank was
exploring a Brightstar sale to shed lower-growth businesses in 2018, people
familiar with the matter told Reuters at the time. Brightstar could be valued
at more than $1 billion, the people said.
SoftBank Group
Chief Executive Masayoshi Son has been selling core assets to stabilise its
balance sheet and pay for its repurchase programme to bolster its shares.
Even so, SoftBank
executives, frustrated at the group's share performance, have held early stage
talks about taking the Japanese technology group private, a source has told
Reuters.
The transaction,
subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions, is
expected to close by March 31, 2021, SoftBank Group said.
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