SoftBank set for sharp quarterly profit drop amid pressure from Elliott

SoftBank has come under increasing pressure for its lack of transparency, especially around its $100 billion Vision Fund of largely unlisted start-ups

Japan's SoftBank Group is expected to post a slide in profits for the past quarter, deepening concern about its ability to secure funding for a second Vision Fund and giving activist fund Elliott Management more fodder for a shake-up.

Elliott, the New York-based fund founded by billionaire Paul Singer, has amassed a stake of almost $3 billion in SoftBank and is pushing for changes including $20 billion in stock buybacks, sources said last week.

The emergence of Elliott, one of the world's most powerful activist investors, as a prominent SoftBank shareholder is likely to highlight the Japanese conglomerate's difficulties following its soured