SoftBank Group Corp. is expected to lead an investment of almost $1.2 billion into genetic-testing provider Invitae Corp., according to the Wall Street Journal. The investment, in the form of convertible debt, is designed to help Invitae gain broader use of its platform.
Invitae shares have tripled in the past 12 months and closed on Thursday at $39.19 apiece, giving the company a market value of about $7.7 billion.
Under the deal, the notes have an initial conversion price of $43.18 per share, a 20% premium to the company’s trailing 5-day average as of April 1.
The investment is part of SoftBank’s effort to put more money and build a portfolio of biotech and life sciences companies.
Recently, SoftBank said it was investing in the convertible debt of Pacific Biosciences of California Inc.
The Japanese tech giant has also invested in the initial public offerings of several U.S life sciences companies.
Despite SoftBank and its $100 billion Vision Fund facing stumbles in the past, they have scored significant paper gains recently on record valuation jumps on some companies that have gone public.SoftBank and Invitae stocks are currently gaining. 9984: TYO is up 2.10%, NVTA: NYSE is up 2.48% on premarket.
