Jamal Khashoggi threatens to taint SoftBank-Saudi relationship

Saudi
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Masayoshi Son, SoftBank
Group Chairman and CEO.
Reuters

• Japanese conglomerate and tech investor SoftBank is
  under scrutiny over its ties to Saudi Arabia, a major backer of
  its $100 billion Vision Fund.
• That is thanks to global outcry over the status of
  missing Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who is feared dead
  after he was last seen entering the Saudi consulate in
  Istanbul.
• Saudi Arabia’s crown prince pledged $45 billion to
  SoftBank’s next $100 billion Vision Fund.
• SoftBank COO Marcelo Claure said on Tuesday the company
  was “anxiously” watching the Kashoggi situation.

Japanese conglomerate SoftBank is under intense scrutiny over its
plans to raise a second $100 billion technology investment fund
with $45 billion from Saudi Arabia.

SoftBank is already one of the world’s biggest tech investors
through its first Vision Fund, and has boasted of plans to raise
multiple $100 billion funds. Its current backers including Apple,
Foxconn, Qualcomm, and Saudia Arabia.

Saudi Arabia crown prince Mohammed bin Salman told Bloomberg
earlier this month that the country’s sovereign wealth fund would
put $45 billion into the second Vision Fund.

That relationship is looking more problematic thanks to global
outcry over the fate of missing Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi,
who was last seen entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on
October 2 and is now feared dead. Turkish authorities have said
they have evidence the journalist was murdered.

That has prompted a rethink among businesses about their deep
financial ties to Saudi Arabia.

Speaking at a conference in California on Tuesday, SoftBank
Chief Operating Officer Marcelo Claure said the Japanese firm was
“anxiously looking at what is happening” at the situation with
Khashoggi.

He said: “We like most parties in the world are looking at events
unfold. Based on that, we will make decisions in the future, but
at this point in time like most companies that have relationships
with Saudi Arabia we are watching developments and see where this
goes.”

Neither Claure nor the company is commenting on whether SoftBank
may sever its financial ties to the Kingdom. Separately, Claure
said “there is no certainty” that SoftBank would launch a second
Vision Fund, though this is not thought to be directly connected
to concerns over Khashoggi.

SoftBank chief executive Masayoshi Son has yet to speak out
publicly about Khashoggi and, according to media reports, he is
still due to attend a Saudi investor summit from which
many investors and policymakers have distanced
themselves,including Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi and Richard
Branson.