The most disconcerting thing about Masayoshi Son at the announcement of SoftBank’s quarterly results was not the record-breaking $23bn loss, the promise of ferocious cost-cutting or even, two days later, the historic selldown of the company’s stake in Alibaba.
It was how much he looks and sounds like the 65-year-old chief executive of a Japanese company: a conservative cash-hoarder in full protective mode, wary of the future and wearily trimming dreams to reflect the here and now.
Over the years, with rocket-fuel panache and confidence, Son the transformational dealmaker and Vision Fund founder has done everything to avoid this perception. When set against almost every other large Japanese company, he has been more aggressive in his bets, more creative in his use of debt and more committed to selling investors on the idea that his Big Picture is the biggest and most picturesque in the market.
