Anwar Ibrahim Announces SoftBank’s $50 Billion Investment Plan in Malaysia

Key Facts

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said on October 24 that Masayoshi Son had told him of a $50 billion investment plan in Malaysia, linking the country’s ambition to build artificial intelligence infrastructure with SoftBank’s expansion in the sector. Anwar said the discussion took place during a video call with the group’s chairman and chief executive the previous week. He said the plan covers artificial intelligence, new technologies and data centers. But SoftBank did not confirm the figure in its published statement, so the plan’s value remains attributed to the prime minister’s announcement. The announcement comes as Malaysia attracts major data center investments and seeks to establish its position in the artificial intelligence economy.

Anwar identified Sarawak, including the city of Kuching, and Peninsular Malaysia as potential locations for the investments. Mentioning Sarawak gives the announcement a direct link to a previous framework agreement SoftBank signed with Grab and Malaysia’s PETROS. The companies signed the agreement on October 8 to explore an artificial intelligence and digital infrastructure platform in the state. The agreement calls for preparing a roadmap for phased development, while exploring computing, artificial intelligence services, advanced technologies, robotics, workforce development and the local community. SoftBank said the agreement does not obligate the parties to enter into definitive agreements or carry out the proposed project, making it a framework for exploration rather than evidence that implementation or financing has begun.

Available figures indicate that the announcement comes in a Malaysian market where data center investment has expanded rapidly. The country recorded 385.7 billion ringgit in investments related to the sector between 2021 and mid-2026, according to The Next Web. Malaysia also launched the “Malaysia AI” initiative in July, aiming to become an “AI nation” by 2030, according to a Fortune report. Anwar said the prospective investment could create new and better job opportunities for Malaysians, particularly young people and students. These remarks link the attraction of technology infrastructure with the government’s stated goal of expanding local employment opportunities.

In the market, SoftBank Group’s U.S. depositary receipt, listed under the ticker SFTBY, rose 4.59% on October 26 and closed at $14.04, according to Investing.com data. The receipt had closed at $13.42 on October 23, down 0.30% in the previous session. The group’s shares on the Tokyo Stock Exchange moved in the opposite direction on October 26, falling 0.30% to 4,263 yen. The divergence shows that the U.S. depositary receipt’s move was not repeated in the Japanese market that day. A single session’s movement alone is not enough to establish that investors priced in the Malaysia plan, whose value SoftBank has not officially announced.

The prospective plan comes amid the group’s growing investment record in artificial intelligence, alongside mixed financial results. In the first quarter of fiscal 2026, SoftBank’s profit fell 18% to 347.3 billion yen, from 421.8 billion yen in the same period a year earlier, according to the Associated Press. In the same period, quarterly sales rose about 11% to 2 trillion yen. Chief Financial Officer Yoshimitsu Goto said in August that the group had invested an additional $20 billion in OpenAI and planned further investments during the current fiscal year. For the full year, the group recorded a profit of 5 trillion yen for the fiscal year ended in March 2026, compared with 1.15 trillion yen in the previous year.

SoftBank is scheduled to announce its second-quarter fiscal 2026 results on November 10, the next opportunity for investors to follow the group’s figures. SoftBank’s confirmation of the Malaysia plan and its value will remain among the key details awaited after Anwar’s announcement. Details of financing, implementation phases and which projects will become firm commitments have also not been settled in the information announced. The Sarawak agreement, meanwhile, provides for exploring the project, while allowing the companies not to proceed to definitive agreements or implementation. That makes announcements about next steps, particularly the specific locations and actual projects, a focus for monitoring the plan.