Saudi Arabia weighs EA-Savvy merger to create gaming giant

PIF is weighing a restructuring of its gaming investments as it seeks greater coordination across its portfolio.

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) is considering merging Electronic Arts (EA) with Savvy Games Group in a deal that would bring popular games including Madden NFL and Pokémon Go under one umbrella, Bloomberg reported, citing sources.

PIF executives are considering plans to create one of the world’s largest gaming companies, allowing for better coordination among the fund’s assets. No final decisions have been made, and a deal is unlikely to be completed before Savvy closes its $6 billion acquisition of Chinese mobile gaming company Moonton.

The merger would mark a major shift in the structure of the Saudi PIF’s gaming strategy, potentially giving it a single entity through which it could pursue acquisitions, develop games, and capitalize on intellectual property rights across different segments of the $214 billion industry, Bloomberg said.

According to Argaam data, EA announced last month that it had completed its acquisition by an investor consortium led by PIF and including Silver Lake and Affinity Partners.

EA shareholders will receive $210 per share. Trading in the company's shares was halted, and its Nasdaq listing was canceled, making EA a privately held company owned by the consortium.