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May 19, 2020 - Economy & Business

SoftBank reportedly looking to sell $20 billion of T-Mobile shares

Dan Primack
illustration of telecom tower giving off sonar of money signs

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

SoftBank Group reportedly is seeking to sell around $20 billion worth of shares in T-Mobile US, which it acquired via T-Mobile's recently closed merger with Sprint. One buyer is expected to be Germany's Deutsche Telekom, which currently holds a 43.6% stake in T-Mobile US.

Why it matters: This could give Deutsche Telekom a majority stake in America's second-largest mobile carrier (depending on how you crunch the numbers), and give SoftBank some much-needed liquidity.

  • So, this happened: SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son compared himself to both Jesus and the Beatles, during an investor call, in terms of initially being misunderstood and eventually finding redemption.
  • The bottom line: "News of the sale comes on the same day that SoftBank reported $13 billion in total annual losses for its main business with $18 billion in losses for its massive venture arm, the Vision Fund." ⁠— Lauren Feiner, CNBC

Editor's note: The headline in this story has been corrected to show that the correct figure is $20 billion, not $20 million.

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