SoftBank Acquires DigitalBridge For $4 Billion To Scale AI Infrastructure

• The enterprise value of the deal is approximately $4.0 billion.
• Following the acquisition, DigitalBridge will continue as an independent platform under the leadership of CEO Marc Ganzi.
• SoftBank has been gradually boosting its involvement in artificial intelligence by controlling chipmaker Arm Holdings and investing in OpenAI.

SoftBank Group Corp. (SFTBY) announced on Monday that it has agreed to acquire the data center and digital infrastructure assets investment firm DigitalBridge Group, Inc. (DBRG), for approximately $4.0 billion.

The acquisition is intended to strengthen SoftBank's ability to develop and scale infrastructure critical for next-generation artificial intelligence applications.

Transaction Details

SoftBank will acquire all outstanding DigitalBridge shares at $16 per share in cash. The deal received unanimous approval from a special committee of DigitalBridge's Board and represents a 15% premium to the company's closing price on December 26. 

Following the announcement, DigitalBridge stock rose more than 9% and was among the top three trending equity tickers on Stocktwits. SoftBank stock inched 0.4% higher. 

Retail sentiment around DigitalBridge jumped to ‘extremely bullish’ from ‘bearish’ territory the previous day. At the same time, message volume improved to ‘extremely high’ from ‘extremely low’ levels in 24 hours. 

Following the acquisition, DigitalBridge will continue as an independent platform under the leadership of CEO Marc Ganzi. The transaction is expected to be completed in the second half of 2026.

“As AI transforms industries worldwide, we need more compute, connectivity, power, and scalable infrastructure.”

-Masayoshi Son, Chairman and CEO, SoftBank 

Implications for AI And Digital Infrastructure

With DigitalBridge’s expertise and global reach, SoftBank aims to secure critical infrastructure capacity and enhance connectivity necessary for AI deployment and large-scale operations. 

SoftBank has been gradually boosting its involvement in artificial intelligence by controlling chipmaker Arm Holdings and investing in OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, even as it exited its investment in Nvidia in October.

According to a CNBC report, speaking in Tokyo in early December, Son said he was “crying” when SoftBank sold all of its Nvidia shares for $5.83 billion, adding that the sale happened only because the company needed cash to invest in OpenAI and new data center projects.

The report also stated that Son dismissed warnings of an AI bubble and predicted that superintelligence and AI robots will eventually generate at least 10% of global GDP.

DigitalBridge oversees about $108 billion in infrastructure assets for investors and operates offices throughout North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia.

SFTBY stock has gained over 97% year-to-date. 

Also See: Why Did Praxis Precision Stock Surge 12% Pre-Market Today?

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