SoftBank’s finance chief has accused S&P Global of “not trusting the management” and criticised the rating agency for failing to upgrade its credit rating after the blockbuster listing of UK chip designer Arm.
In an interview on Thursday, Yoshimitsu Goto said he was “deeply disappointed” with S&P’s decision on the same day to stop short of an upgrade, despite raising its credit outlook from stable to positive.
The rating agency in May cut SoftBank’s long-term credit rating from double B plus, its highest non-investment grade, to double B following record investment losses. But analysts had expected an upgrade after SoftBank raised $5bn in the Arm listing, strengthening the group’s balance sheet and financing capability.