OpenAI IPO Delay: SoftBank Falls 12% as $1 Trillion Listing Eyes 2027
OpenAI's CFO is pushing for a 2027 listing. SoftBank, which carries a $40 billion bridge loan against its OpenAI stake, fell 12% on the news.
Reports of an OpenAI IPO delay sent SoftBank Group shares down 12.53% on June 26 - the steepest single-session fall for the Japanese conglomerate since August 2024. Bloomberg and the New York Times both reported that OpenAI is leaning toward pushing its public listing to 2027, with CFO Sarah Friar a key advocate for the delay. Altman has refused to cut the $1 trillion target. OpenAI last raised private capital at a $730 billion valuation.
Sarah Friar Is Pushing Against a 2026 Timeline
Friar's case for waiting centers on two problems. First, OpenAI has committed to $600 billion in infrastructure spending - data centers, chips, power infrastructure - that makes its financial profile hard to present to institutional investors who expect a path to profitability. Second, meeting public-company reporting standards requires operational infrastructure OpenAI has not yet built. Friar has told colleagues a 2027 listing gives the company time to get those conditions right before answering to public shareholders.
SoftBank's $40 Billion Bridge Loan Comes Due in March 2027
SoftBank's committed capital in OpenAI sits at about $65 billion - and the group borrowed $40 billion in a bridge loan to fund those commitments, with repayment due March 2027. A 2027 IPO puts the listing uncomfortably close to that debt deadline. Earlier this month, SoftBank tried to raise $6 billion through a margin loan collateralized against its OpenAI stake, but lenders stalled, citing difficulty valuing a private company with no public benchmark. Masayoshi Son is not in a position to negotiate a deadline extension from a position of strength. SoftBank has not publicly commented.
SpaceX's 32% Drop From Peak Gave Bankers Their Evidence
Market timing is the third factor. SpaceX raised $75 billion in the biggest IPO in history on June 12, debuting at a $2.2 trillion valuation. Shares hit $218 within a week before falling to $149 by June 26 - a 32% drop in under two weeks, even for a company with $17 billion in 2025 revenue. Bankers advising OpenAI now have a concrete data point for what volatile conditions can do to a high-profile AI listing, even one with real revenue behind it.