Digital Arts (EA), one of many greatest gaming corporations on the planet, has agreed a deal to promote the corporate for $55bn (£41bn).
The consortium of consumers embrace Saudi Arabia’s Public Funding Fund (PIF), Silver Lake and Jared Kushner’s Affinity Companions.
EA is thought for making and publishing best-selling video games corresponding to EA FC, previously generally known as Fifa, The Sims and Mass Impact.
It’s understood to be the most important leveraged buyout in historical past – the place a major quantity of the acquisition is financed by borrowing cash.
The deal will take EA non-public – that means all of its public shares might be bought and it’ll not be traded on a inventory change.
The acquisition value places a major 25% premium in the marketplace worth of EA, valuing it at $210 per share.
EA boss Andrew Wilson, who will stay in put up, mentioned it was a “highly effective recognition” of the agency’s work.
“Along with our companions, we’ll create transformative experiences to encourage generations to return,” he mentioned.
The corporations shopping for EA will contribute roughly $36bn, with the remaining quantity being financed by loans.
It’s a huge buy of an organization which has been synonymous with the gaming business for greater than 40 years.
In that point, EA has been answerable for a few of the greatest recreation collection in historical past. Its soccer titles, now generally known as EA FC, have offered 325 million copies because the first launch in 1993.
The Sims has offered greater than 200 million copies, and Want For Velocity greater than 150 million.
But it surely has additionally been the writer of many different common titles – usually being the associate of selection for video games within the Harry Potter and James Bond collection prior to now.
The acquisition might be a giant gaming feather within the cap of Saudi Arabia, which has been rising its presence within the business in recent times.
In March 2025, the nation’s funding fund paid $3.5bn to buy the gaming division of Niantic – giving it management of the hit cell recreation Pokémon Go.
The acquisition grew to become a part of Scopely Inc – makers of Monopoly Go – which itself was purchased by PIF subsidiary Savvy Video games Group for $4.9bn in 2023.
Saudi Arabia has made waves within the eSports business, internet hosting main tournaments together with the eSports World Cup, and it’ll additionally host 2027’s deliberate Olympic esports Video games.
The nation already has stakes in different massive gaming corporations corresponding to Nintendo and Take-Two Interactive, however the EA buy marks a major extension of its attain.
Its PIF has a whole lot of billions in property on account of its oil wealth, and it’s managed by the nation’s prince Mohammed bin Salman, whose authorities has been accused of human rights violations.
A 2019 UN report said “the state of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is accountable” for the demise of Jamal Khashoggi, a journalist who was crucial of the nation’s authorities.
Saudi Arabia has at all times denied this.
