Softbank 'anxiously' monitoring Saudi Arabia situation, exec says

(Reuters) - Softbank Group <9984.T> Chief Operating Officer Marcelo Claure said it is "business at usual" at the companies backed by its nearly $100 billion Vision Fund despite a tense situation with Saudi Arabia, which provided nearly half of the fund's capital.

Speaking at a technology conference for Arm Holdings, which was acquired by Softbank Group in 2016 in a $32 billion deal, Claure said Softbank is "anxiously looking at what is happening with the news" of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who disappeared after entering a Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Unease over Softbank's ties to Saudi Arabia dragged down Softbank shares earlier this week.

"We, like most parties in the world, are watching events unfold," Claure said. "We are just monitoring."

(The story corrects to show Arm Holdings acquired by Softbank Group, not the Vision Fund, in paragraph 2.)

(Reporting by Stephen Nellisd; editing by Jonathan Oatis)