8 November 2016, India :
Japanese giants Softbank has announced a $550 million write down in its Indian investment, mainly in cab aggregator Ola (ANI Technologies) and ecommerce company Snapdeal (Jasper Infotech).
“Gain or loss arising from financial instruments at FVTPL (fair value through profit or loss) comprises mainly changes in fair value of preferred stock investment including embedded derivatives, such as ANI Technologies Pvt Ltd and Jasper Infotech Private Limited in India, designated as financial assets at FVTPL,” SoftBank said in the earnings statement.
Both Ola and Snapdeal are looking at raising fresh funds to sutain operations amid growing competition from rivals. There are rumors that SoftBank might be putting huge amount in Ola, but with these recent activities, it looks like SoftBank might pass.
Bengaluru-based Ola has so far raised about $1.2 billion from a clutch of investors including Tiger Global Management, Matrix Partners, SoftBank Group and Didi Chuxing.
“My goal is to become the Warren Buffett of the tech industry. We’re aiming to be the Berkshire Hathaway of tech,” SoftBank Group Corp Chief Executive Masayoshi Son said after the earnings announcement. Source- Livemint
