SoftBank earns $300m from eToro IPO

Japanese investment giant SoftBank, who Israel activity is managed by former Mossad chief Yossi Cohen, has recorded major returns from its investment in Israeli fintech company eToro (Nasdaq: ETOR), sources have informed “Globes.”

Market sources estimate that the fund currently holds eToro shares that reflect a profit of about $300 million on its investment. The profit has not yet been realized as SoftBank did not sell its shares in the flotation, which the company completed last week. Estimates are that Softbank has earned returns of three times the fund’s original investment.

Lower valuation than previous investments

SoftBank first invested in eToro in 2021, in a private financing round that was held in preparation for a planned merger with a US-based SPAC – a move that was ultimately cancelled. At the time, the company was valued at around $10 billion, and SoftBank’s investment was estimated to be between $100 million and $150 million.

The fund’s holding has not been publicly disclosed, but according to recent estimates, it currently ranges between 1% and 5% of the company’s shares, following dilutions over the years.

eToro’s IPO on Nasdaq was completed on May 14 at a valuation of $4.3 billion. The share price jumped 34% on the first day of trading, which increased the company’s market cap to $5.4 billion. The market cap has since risen to $5.6 billion.

Even so eToro’s valuation is significantly lower than previous estimates, than expectations in the 2021 SPAC merger, but is still high enough to yield early investors handsome profits – even in the case of SoftBank, which entered the investment at a higher valuation. According to industry sources, SoftBank chose not to sell shares as part of the offering, but may consider a partial sale in the future.

The investment in eToro is part of SoftBank’s broader activity in the Israeli tech market. Since the beginning of its operations in Israel, the fund has invested an estimated NIS 2.5 billion in a variety of tech companies, including Cato Networks, Claroty and others.

SoftBank also enjoyed a profit on Wiz

The Japanese fund focuses on areas such as cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, fintech and software infrastructure, and is currently one of the most active and significant foreign investors in Israel.

In recent months, SoftBank has also enjoyed a particularly handsome profit from its relatively late investment in cybersecurity company Wiz, which was sold to Google in March for $32 billion – the biggest Israeli exit ever, as well as Google’s largest-ever acquisition.

SoftBank, which invested in Wiz shortly before the deal, is expected to record a 3 to 5-fold return on its investment, with a profit that is also expected to amount to hundreds of millions of shekels.

Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on May 20, 2025.

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