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SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son stands before an optimistic turnaround chart for WeWork.KAZUHIRO NOGI/AFP via Getty Images
SoftBank published its financials for the July to September quarter on Wednesday, posting a big loss thanks to the poor performance of its investments in WeWork and Uber.
CEO Masayoshi Son is known for giving idiosyncratic presentations filled with expressive images, wild graphs, and inspirational quotes.
He didn't disappoint during his financial presentation on Wednesday.
SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son, the man overseeing the $100 billion Vision Fund, has something of a reputation for wild pitch decks. In 2010, he famously laid out a 300-year vision over a set of slides full of inspirational quotes and whimsical musings on the nature of love.
The Japanese magnate and investor hasn't disappointed with his latest set of slides.
In a financial presentation for SoftBank's July-to-September quarter on Wednesday, Son directly acknowledged the financial damage wrought by his firm's multi-billion dollar bet on office-sharing firm WeWork, describing it as the "WeWork problem."
SoftBank's financials indicated that its combined loss on the value of its WeWork shares came to $8.2 billion.
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WeWork was headed to IPO and worth an estimated $47 billion, but experienced a disastrous few months after reporters scrutinized its governance, business model, and the behaviour of cofounder Adam Neumann. The firm cancelled its IPO, and Neumann stepped down as CEO. SoftBank took control of the firm in October in a $9.5 billion rescue package.
But Son, per his presentation, is optimistic SoftBank can turn the firm around.
Masayoshi Son opened his presentation by acknowledging the WeWork fiasco. "We are actually in a rough sea," he said.
He showed a picture of a rough sea to make his point.
The rough sea is overlaid with headlines in Japanese about SoftBank and WeWork.
Son said: "There [is a lot of] media coverage here and there, especially in the past two months. 'SoftBank may go bankrupt. Vision Fund is a big negative. Uber is in terrible share price after the IPO. WeWork may go bankrupt. And SoftBank is actually putting further money into this company so that it can go bankrupt altogether so that all the aggressive investment activity has been failed.' Such coverage... In a sense, it may be true."
Son took on the elephant in the room — SoftBank's bet on WeWork and how much it cost the company
"My judgment in investment was not right in many ways, so I regret [that] in many ways," he said.
He dug into how much SoftBank lost on WeWork
Its combined loss on its WeWork shares was $8.2 billion across the Vision Fund and SoftBank Group.
After questions about how highly WeWork was valued, Son showed this slide explaining the Vision Fund's valuation process
It reads: "This hypothetical illustration is provided solely for illustrative purposes, reflects the current beliefs of SBG as of the date hereof, and is based on a variety of assumptions and estimates...
"Accordingly, actual results may differ materially from the hypothetical illustration presented herein. For the avoidance of doubt, this illustration does not reflect actual results or metrics from the company."
Once gross profit and those massive operating expenses are sorted out, Son anticipates profitability
Look at that hockey stick!
And after this turnaround plan, it will be back to calm seas
Son said: "We don't see any rough sea. It's just the gentle waves in the sea."
