SoftBank Prices ¥1 Trillion Seven-Year Retail Bond at 4.75% Coupon

SoftBank Group Corp. priced a ¥1 trillion (approximately $6.3 billion) seven-year retail bond at a 4.75% coupon. The notes settled near the top of the 4.3%–4.9% range that the company indicated in a filing the previous month. The bond is rated investment-grade by Japanese agencies, while global rating firms assign a speculative-grade rating.

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Japan’s benchmark 10-year government bond yield has risen above 3% for the first time in roughly three decades, making fixed-income products more attractive to savers who traditionally keep assets in bank deposits. Bloomberg data show that yen-denominated retail corporate bonds issued this year have carried an average coupon of 2.3%, well below SoftBank’s 4.75% rate. Through early September, issuers have priced ¥2.88 trillion of retail bonds this year, surpassing every previous full-year total.

BloombergSoftBank ¥1T Bond Priced at 4.75%

SoftBank’s issuance taps a growing pool of individual investors seeking higher yields and lower exposure to interim price swings. By diversifying funding away from large institutional sales, the company aims to reduce pressure on credit spreads and broaden the retail bond market. Analysts note that the higher coupon reflects the additional credit risk borne by retail holders.

SoftBank ¥1T Bond Priced at 4.75%

Kazuma Ogino, senior credit analyst at Nomura Securities, said the bond’s size and yield level could attract new individual investors and help diversify funding sources. Takayuki Hiratsuka, head of SMBC Nikko Securities’ Nihonbashi branch, observed a clear rise in interest among retail investors as yields climb above 3% and inflation concerns grow.

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• “The yield level and ¥1 trillion size could draw new individual investors into the market,” — Kazuma Ogino, senior credit analyst

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• “Tapping retail investors can diversify funding sources and ease that pressure,” — Kazuma Ogino, senior credit analyst

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• “I feel interest among individual investors in bonds is clearly increasing,” — Takayuki Hiratsuka, head of SMBC Nikko Securities Inc

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