SoftBank Group founder and CEO Masayoshi Son has lost over $130 million from his investments in Bitcoin, a report by the Wall Street Journal revealed.
The Japanese billionaire, who is known for his investments in startups, has invested heavily in Bitcoin in late 2017 when the value of the digital currency was already around its peak. However, as the prices began to plummet, he offloaded all his holdings.
The value of Bitcoin peaked in December 2017, after the launch of Bitcoin futures in the United States by the Chicago Board Options Exchange. The digital currency, however, could not hold its price and started to go down, reaching its lowpoint at $3,200 last December.
In recent days, Bitcoin has been showing a bullish yet steady trend again as it climbed above $5,600, as per CoinMarketCap.com.
A wrong bet by a pro
Son’s investment in the digital asset was made under the advisory of Peter Briger, co-chairman of the Fortress Investment Group. Briger himself was an early investor in Bitcoin and first bet on the asset in 2013.
SoftBank acquired Briger’s venture in February 2017 which gave the control of its more than $150 million Bitcoin investments to the Japanese holding company.
SoftBank came into the limelight when it launched a $100 billion vision fund to fund startups across the globe. The company has made significant investments in various early-stage ventures including startup-mammoths like Uber, WeWork, and Flipkart. The fund, however, did not make any noticeable investment in any crypto or blockchain-related company.
Son is not the only billionaire to have failed in evolving the crypto industry, as last year, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak revealed his involvement in a few failed initial coin offerings (ICOs).
Meanwhile, the celebrity tennis player Serena Williams recently revealed that she has invested in the US-based crypto exchange Coinbase through Serena Ventures.
(Photo: Wikimedia Commons)
