SoftBank's plans raises doubts on $33-billion bond gurantees

The focus on SoftBank's bond guarantees highlights how the market remains concerned about the broader company's huge debt that it's accumulated making investments around the globe

Billionaire Masayoshi Son’s plan to list his cash-cow Japanese telecom business is raising concern among observers that the company might stop guaranteeing the debt of its parent SoftBank Group Corp., worsening the quality of its credit.

The mobile division SoftBank Corp. assures payments to investors on $33.4 billion in bonds of its parent, which is rated junk by Moody’s Investors Service and S&P Global Ratings, according to Bloomberg-compiled data. The unit needs to prove its independence to get listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, meaning that it probably would have to cancel the guarantees to pass the test, according to