SoftBank raises $11bn in record junk bond offering to bankroll its massive OpenAI bet

From the Newshound archive · first published 24 September 2026.

Japanese tech giant SoftBank has sold $11.1bn in high-yield bonds in the biggest such corporate offering ever recorded. The debt raise is designed to fund SoftBank's expanding stake in OpenAI. Junk-rated bonds carry higher interest costs, meaning SoftBank is paying a premium to back the AI firm. The deal signals how aggressively the group is chasing dominance in the artificial intelligence race.