Saudi Arabia will own 93.4 percent of EA after buyout
Saudi Arabia's sovereign Public Investment Fund (PIF) is poised to become the majority owner of EA as part of a $55 billon take-private that will see an investor consortium take control of the Battlefield and Apex Legends publisher.
The deal was announced earlier this year and will result in EA being acquired by a group that includes PIF, Silver Lake, and Affinity Partners, the latter of which is the investment firm established by U.S. president Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner.
The ownership group will collectively contribute $36 billion to the buyout. JP Morgan Chase Bank will provide an additional $20 billion in debt financing.
Until now, it has been unclear how ownership will be divided between members of the consortium. As spotted by The Wall Street Journal, however, a new filing submitted to regulators in Brazil indicates PIF will own 93.4 percent of EA post-buyout.
Silver Lake and Affinity Parters will own 5.5 percent and 1.1 percent, respectively.
EA has discussed the potential impact of the deal at length in a series of SEC filings and claims the move won't result in "immediate" layoffs. The company also told employees it will retain "creative control" under its new owners.
PIF made significant inroads into the video game industry before turning its attention to EA, having previously acquired stakes in high-profile companies such as Nintendo, Koei Tecmo, Capcom, Nexon, and Take-Two.
The investment fund is chaired by Saudi Arabia's de-factor ruler and crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman—who, as noted by The BBC, was linked to the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Advocacy groups such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have strongly criticised Saudi Arabia's human rights record under the leadership of bin Salman, who they claim has suppressed freedom of speech by outlawing protests and demonstrations, criminalising LGBTQ+ relationships and gender expression, and discriminating against women.
Communications Workers of America president Claude Cummings Jr and unionized workers at EA have called on regulators to scrutinise the buyout to address labor and national security concerns.
Earlier this year, Game Developer columnist Nicole Carpenter spoke with a number of analysts to better understand how the seismic deal will impact EA and the wider industry.
