If investors were already concerned about SoftBank's poor performance this year, a news release from the company tonight isn't going to help them.
There is a big news. The CEO of SoftBank Group International, a Frenchman who was appointed in January, is leaving the company.
Claure has followed Combes before. When the merger with T-Mobile received regulatory approval in the spring of 2020, Claure was no longer the CEO of SoftBank-controlled sprint. The hopes of turning the company around was what SoftBank had in mind when it took control of the company. It was thought that Combes was a good fit for the role because he had been the CEO of several companies.
WeWork transitioned into a public company last fall when it merged with a blank check company. After plans for a traditional IPO fell through, Claure stepped in as executive chairman of the shared office space company.
In the SoftBank release about the management change-up, Combes seems to be getting ready for his next role by listing off his accomplishments.
He said it was a pleasure to work with Masa and the teams at SoftBank. The integration of the SoftBank Latin America Funds into the Vision Fund was one of the highlights of my time at SoftBank.
SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son thankedMichel for his contributions to the company. I wish him well with his future plans, as he has played a critical role in some of our most important investments. He will continue to represent us on various company boards, which is great.
The release doesn't offer much other than that he "has decided to leave SoftBank to pursue new opportunities"
Alex Clavel, a managing partner at SoftBank Group International who joined the firm almost seven years ago, is the new SoftBank executive.
A growing number of SoftBank employees, including Claure, have left the company in the last year, with seven of them joining General Catalyst.
Ronald Fisher, Son's longest-serving lieutenant, and two of the three managing partners at SoftBank's Latin America Fund announced in spring that they were spinning up their own venture business.
SoftBank is likely to shrink further.
In the first half of last month, the company said it lost more money in its last fiscal year than it ever has, and that it will reduce its pace of new investments. The market has continued to fall, putting more pressure on the firm.
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