BUSINESSWEEK ONLINE : JANUARY 22, 2001 ISSUE
BUSINESS WEEK E.BIZ -- COVER STORY Softbank's Dealmakers Yoshitaka Kitao, PRESIDENT, SOFTBANK FINANCE CORP. Financial wizard of the Softbank confederation. Engineered Softbank's debt-fueled acquisition strategy in the mid-1990s as the CFO. Now runs Softbank's financial businesses in Japan and was key negotiator for last fall's buyout of state-owned Nippon Credit Bank. Known to get by on three hours of sleep when it is time to close a deal. Ronald Fisher, CEO, SOFTBANK GLOBAL VENTURES Son's right-hand man internationally, overseeing all venture investing outside of Japan. Came to Softbank in 1995 after being CEO of PC software maker Phoenix Technologies. He and Son discovered the Net together by visiting dozens of small companies, including Yahoo!, where they took a 31% stake at one point. Gary Rieschel, PRESIDENT, SOFTBANK VENTURE CAPITAL In charge of Softbank's U.S. venture arm, presiding over an almost $2 billion fund. Joined Softbank in 1996 after stints at Cisco Systems and Intel. Despite the Net downturn, he remains bullish. ''We are still in the early stages of the Internet's impact on the economy, so there's no reason to suddenly become shy about making investments,'' he says. Ken Miyauchi, PRESIDENT, SOFTBANK E-COMMERCE CORP. One of Son's oldest and most dedicated lieutenants, he heads Softbank's e-commerce ventures in Japan. A former consultant with the Japan Productivity Center, he joined Softbank in 1984. ''The working conditions were so tough then that most of the original staff quit,'' he says. He hung in--and helped build Softbank into Japan's Net leader. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ BACK TO TOP					RELATED ITEMS The Last True Believer TABLE: Softbank's Netbatsu TABLE: Softbank's Dealmakers CHART: Softbank's Cash Flow TABLE: Softbank Has Plenty of Cash Available... TABLE: ...And Its Operating Performance Is Improving Land of the Rising Son ONLINE EXTRA: Son: "It's Still Just the Beginning" INTERACT E-Mail to Business Week Online

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