ZURICH — SoftBank Group cannot buy ABB’s robotics business in China. Chinese regulators have prohibited the acquisition there, ABB said on Thursday, casting doubt over the Japanese company’s $5.375 billion deal for the entire division.
In its statement, ABB said the word came from SoftBank: China’s Office of the Working Mechanism for Foreign Investment Security Review had prohibited the acquisition of the ABB Robotics business in China. ABB did not say the wider sale was off. It said the two companies remain in close dialogue and are working constructively on the transaction.
China is not a side market for this deal. For ABB, it is the division’s biggest robotics market, at roughly 30% of its robot-related business, and Shanghai hosts its global robotics headquarters. Across the country the group counts some 15,000 employees, about 30 local companies and a presence in nearly 130 cities.
Why SoftBank wanted the business
The agreement dates to October 2025. SoftBank was to pay an enterprise value of $5.375 billion, and ABB set aside its earlier idea of spinning the division off as a separately listed company. Closing was pencilled in for mid-to-late 2026, after approvals in China, the European Union and the United States.
Son has put robotics near the top of his AI plans. Announcing the deal last year, Son said: “SoftBank’s next frontier is Physical AI.”
Data concerns reported, not confirmed
The Financial Times reported the prohibition first, on Thursday. The FT said China’s National Development and Reform Commission, which reviews foreign investments that may carry national security implications, told SoftBank last week that the deal would not be allowed. The paper also said the commission was worried that robotics data could be sent overseas and used to train AI models, including those built by OpenAI, a company in which SoftBank is a major investor.
ABB’s statement gave no reason for the decision. SoftBank declined to comment, and the commission did not immediately respond to a request for comment, Reuters reported.
The ABB case is the second major deal China has blocked this year. Meta was earlier ordered to unwind its acquisition of artificial intelligence startup Manus, a deal worth more than $2 billion.
Investors reacted quickly. ABB shares fell 1.1% in morning trading on Thursday. SoftBank shares were down about 5% before the FT report appeared and ended the day down 6.8%.
ABB gave no new timetable for the sale in its statement on Thursday.
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