SoftBank planning to cut headcount at Vision Fund after record net loss

The CEO of SoftBank Group Corp., Masayoshi Son on Monday says that it plans to cut headcount at its subsidiary Vision Fund investing arm, after a crash in the value of its portfolio pushed his conglomerate to a record quarterly net loss.

Vision Fund, which upended the world of venture capital with splashy bets on startups such as ride hailers Uber and Didi, posted a $23.1 billion loss in the April-June quarter as value evaporated from its investments in the market rout, Reuters reports.

Son at an earnings news conference says that the world is in great confusion.

The result caps a thunderous six months for the Vision Fund, which posted a record $26.2 billion quarterly loss in May after SoftBank was caught out by increasing interest rates and political instability, hammering the markets globally.

Son has already radically climbed back investment activity. In the first quarter, the Vision Fund arm approves just $600 million in new investments, in comparison with $20.6 billion in the same period a year earlier.

He pledged to go further, limiting the second fund just to manage its current portfolio of investments, while in Vision Fund, it plans workforce cuts and cost reductions across the group.

Son believes that they also need to cut costs with no sacred areas.