Letter # 106 

“He had no business plan, no revenues – but his eyes were very strong” said Masayoshi Son, CEO of SoftBank about Jack Ma, founder of Alibaba as he invested $20m in the year 2000. Over the next two decades, that investment topped $150b in value.

This incredible investment decision laid the seeds for Vision Funds (SVF1, SVF2 and LatAm) that raised $150b in commitments for SoftBank.

By Sept-21, investors in SVF were sitting pretty on gains over $56b – with several impending IPOs and deals. What could go wrong? Well, a number of things.

In our ET article today, we note how investors in SVF have now given up almost all gains, SoftBank’s investment in SVF is now at a loss, and why Son personally owes SoftBank $5b. Well, the cycle hasn’t fully turned yet, and the learnings are plenty – read here:

Read the previous 105 articles here: https://www.buoyantcap.com/blog/what-creates-a-market-cycle/

Disclaimers:

Information in this letter is not intended to be, nor should it be construed as investment, tax or legal advice, or an offer to sell, or a solicitation of any offer to make investments with Buoyant Capital. Prospective investors should rely solely on the Disclosure Document filed with SEBI. Any description involving investment examples, statistical analysis or investment strategies is provided for illustration purposes only – and will not apply in all situations and may be changed at the discretion of the principal officer. Certain information has been provided and/or based on third-party sources and although believed to be reliable, has not been independently verified; the investment managers make no express warranty as to its completeness or accuracy, nor can it accept responsibility for errors appearing herein.