According to informed sources, the $4 billion bridge loan arranged by SoftBank for its equity investment in OpenAI has entered a large-scale distribution phase, with 21 new financial institutions participating in the lending, collectively securing about $7 billion in quotas. The Abu Dhabi First Bank, Singapore Government Investment Corporation, and Standard Chartered each took on nearly $1 billion, while the remaining portion was held by multiple European, Japanese, and Taiwan-based banks. The remaining $33 billion of this loan is still held by the lead underwriters and core senior lenders, and may be further distributed outward in the future.
This 12-month loan was signed this March and is one of the largest bridge financing projects in Asia-Pacific history. Underwriters can earn over $100 million in fees from this deal; before the open distribution in May, nine banks had already joined in. Some banks are concerned about the risk exposure of SoftBank's investment in OpenAI, but all relevant parties have declined to comment publicly.
