Nvidia (NVDA) Stock: SoftBank’s $5.8 Billion Fire Sale Fuels OpenAI Bet
SoftBank just made a power move—dumping $5.8 billion of Nvidia shares to double down on AI. Here’s why Wall Street’s buzzing.
The chip giant’s stock barely flinched. Guess someone’s betting OpenAI’s next breakthrough will make GPUs obsolete—or maybe Masayoshi Son just needed a new yacht.
TLDR
- SoftBank sold its entire Nvidia stake of 32.1 million shares in October 2025 for $5.83 billion to fund new AI investments, including $22.5 billion for OpenAI
- This marks the second time SoftBank has fully exited Nvidia, having previously sold a $4 billion stake in January 2019
- The sale helped SoftBank double its fiscal second quarter profit, with the Vision Fund posting a $19 billion gain
- SoftBank also sold part of its T-Mobile stake for $9.17 billion as part of its asset monetization strategy
- Despite selling, SoftBank remains connected to Nvidia through AI ventures like the $500 billion Stargate data center project
SoftBank has sold every Nvidia share it owned. The Japanese tech giant unloaded 32.1 million shares in October for $5.83 billion.
Japanese giant SoftBank said Tuesday it has sold its entire stake in tech giant Nvidia for $5.83 billion.
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— CNBC International (@CNBCi) November 11, 2025
The move came as SoftBank needs cash for massive AI investments. The company plans to put $22.5 billion into ChatGPT Maker OpenAI. It also needs $6.5 billion for chip designer Ampere.
SoftBank’s Chief Financial Officer Yoshimitsu Goto said the sales were about asset monetization. The company wants to maintain financial strength while creating investment opportunities.
Nvidia shares dropped 0.95% in premarket trading after the news broke. The decline was modest given the size of the sale.
NVIDIA Corporation, NVDA
This is not SoftBank’s first Nvidia exit. The Vision Fund bought a $4 billion stake in 2017. It sold everything in January 2019.
The timing of the latest sale raised eyebrows. Nvidia has been at the center of the AI boom. Its chips power most AI applications and data centers.
Analysts say the sale does not signal concerns about Nvidia. Rolf Bulk from New Street Research said SoftBank needed over $30.5 billion for investments in the October-December quarter. That is more than it invested in the previous two years combined.
Vision Fund Posts Record Gains
The Nvidia sale helped SoftBank double its fiscal second quarter profit. The Vision Fund recorded a $19 billion gain in the period.
Much of that gain came from OpenAI. SoftBank first invested in the AI company in September 2024. OpenAI now carries a valuation around $500 billion.
PayPay, an electronic payment service, also contributed to the fund’s performance. The Vision Fund has been buying and investing across the AI value chain.
SoftBank sold more than just Nvidia shares. It unloaded part of its T-Mobile stake for $9.17 billion. These sales gave the company flexibility to pursue new opportunities.
SoftBank Stays Tied to Nvidia
The sale does not end SoftBank’s connection to Nvidia. The Tokyo-based firm remains involved in ventures that use Nvidia technology.
SoftBank is part of the $500 billion Stargate project in the United States. The project focuses on building data centers. Those centers will likely use Nvidia chips.
The relationship between the two companies runs deep. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has appeared at events with SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son.
SoftBank’s stock has moved sharply in recent weeks. Concerns about an AI bubble sent shares lower. The company announced a four-for-one stock split to make shares more accessible.
Goto said SoftBank wants to provide as many investment opportunities as possible for shareholders. The stock split is part of that strategy.
The company now holds about $35 billion in cash and equivalents after the sales. That war chest positions SoftBank for its next wave of investments in AI infrastructure, robotics, and large language models.
