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Source: Coupang |
[Alpha Biz= Kim Jisun] SEOUL, August 25, 2025 — SoftBank, the largest shareholder of Coupang, has significantly reduced its holdings in the New York-listed e-commerce company this year.
According to a report by Seoul Economic Daily, SoftBank sold 20 million shares of Coupang on August 20 (local time) at $28 per share on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). This marks the third major divestment this year, following large block sales in May and June. In total, SoftBank has sold 60 million Coupang shares in 2025 alone, amounting to approximately USD 1.616 billion (KRW 2.21 trillion), the largest disposal in value terms since its initial investment.
The scale of this year’s sales already surpasses the combined amount of shares SoftBank sold in 2023 (USD 462 million) and 2024 (USD 895 million). Having initially invested around USD 3 billion in Coupang, SoftBank’s ownership stake has declined from 37% at the time of Coupang’s IPO in 2021 to about 17% after just four years.
Market observers attribute the large-scale share disposals to SoftBank’s ongoing strategy to reallocate capital toward artificial intelligence and semiconductor ventures. In February, the company announced “Stargate,” a U.S.-based AI infrastructure initiative worth up to USD 500 billion in partnership with OpenAI, alongside a planned additional investment of up to USD 40 billion in OpenAI. More recently, SoftBank invested USD 2 billion in Intel, acquiring a 2% equity stake.
Alphabiz Reporter Kim Jisun(stockmk2020@alphabiz.co.kr)
