WSJ: Japanese Billionaire SoftBank Founder Lost $130 Million on Bitcoin Investment

Japanese billionaire and founder of multinational conglomerate SoftBank Group, Masayoshi Son, reportedly lost over $130 million with his bitcoin (BTC) investment, the Wall Street Journal reports on April 23.

Per the report, people familiar with the matter claim that Son made the investment at the recommendation of Peter Briger, the co-chairman of asset management company Fortress Investment Group.

Fortress Investment reportedly bought bitcoin in 2013; when SoftBank bought Fortress in February 2017, its holdings (including crypto) were worth more than $150 million. However, Son reportedly invested in the coin when it was near its $20,000 all-time-high in late 2017, and sold in early 2018 after the price plummeted.

Bloomberg estimates Masayoshi’s net worth to be $18.8 billion, noting that it grew by over 54% over the last year. SoftBank Group, on the other hand, reportedly has an annual revenue of $6.3 billion. In September 2018, Cointelegraph reported that the company was developing a blockchain-powered cross-carrier mobile payments service.

Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, whose net worth is estimated at over $100 million, has previously admitted to investing in bitcoin. Still, as Cointelegraph reported in January, he said that he sold all of his BTC holdings when the price hit $20,000 in December 2017.