Rajeev Misra steps down from SoftBank group board along with three others

SoftBank group said four of its internal directors, including Vision Fund CEO Rajeev Misra are stepping down from the board to make way for external members and better its corporate governance.

India-born Misra has been leading the charge of the $100 billion SoftBank Vision Fund, and was a part of the board since 2017 when the group started deploying capital in technology companies globally. In the past year, SoftBank Vision Fund has seen a bunch of its high-profile and richly valued portfolio firms like office sharing startup WeWork and Oyo face major challenges.

Along with Misra, Marcelo Claure, chief operating officer, Katsunori Sago, chief strategy officer, and Yasir O. Al-Rumayyan, from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, will also leave the board.


On Monday, SoftBank reported $6.1 billion in quarterly profit as Vision Fund booked profits but it’s clocked a $1.3 billion loss on the back of its Nasdaq bets on technology stocks.

The Financial Times in a report on Monday said that in February, the US hedge fund Elliott built a $2.5 billion stake in SoftBank and called for Masayoshi Son to improve its governance and return cash to investors.

These changes are aimed at separating SoftBank's management and operations, said SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son, as the conglomerate focuses more on its tech investments than its own operating businesses. "On behalf of our shareholders and the board, I want to express my deep appreciation to Marcelo, Sago-san, Rajeev and Yasir for their dedication and their service on the Board,” said Son in a statement. The changes to our board build upon the enhancements we made in June including ensuring we have a greater proportion of external board directors, and further highlight SoftBank’s commitment to corporate governance.”

SoftBank has witnessed a spate of departures at its Vision Fund in recent months. Chief Operating Officer Ruwan Weerasekera retired earlier this month while partner Penny Bodle has also departed. Investing partners Ted Fike and Justin Wilson quit to join the private equity firm Gores Group while operating partner Avi Golan recently became the CEO of AnyVision.