In brief: SoftBank’s Vision Fund is said to be opening its first China office

The SoftBank-led Vision Fund is hiring an investment team to be based in China as the US$100 billion investment giant expands in one of the world’s most vibrant tech markets, two people with direct knowledge of the move told Reuters.

The Vision Fund plans to open its first China office in Shanghai next year, followed by Beijing and Hong Kong. Altogether it hopes to hire about 20 people, said the people, who declined to be named as the information was confidential.

Source: Reuters

UK-based Vision Fund, which invests in venture-backed, growth stage companies, raised US$93 billion in its first major close in May 2017. Earlier this year, it announced that it will set up offices in India and Saudi Arabia.

Its China entry is not surprising, as the fund has already backed several companies in the country, including healthcare platform Ping An Good Doctor and media-focused Bytedance, operator of popular apps such as Toutiao and Douyin. SoftBank itself has made big investments in Chinese companies like ride-hailer Didi Chuxing. However, the fund’s biggest investments in terms of dollar amount so far have been in Uber, ARM Holdings, Nvidia, WeWork, and Flipkart—none of which are based in China.