Here’s How Much of EA Saudi Arabia Will Reportedly Own After the Acquisition

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Documents show that Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) is expected to control more than 90% of Electronic Arts (EA) if the current acquisition goes through. The deal has been widely discussed and debated since its initial announcement, with people inside and outside the gaming world wondering what it will mean for EA and the broader industry. Although many details about EA becoming a private company are still unclear, a new report offers some insight into how ownership will be distributed among investors.

Following a report in the Wall Street Journal, EA officially announced it was being bought for $55 billion in what was then the biggest leveraged buyout ever. If the deal goes through as expected, EA will no longer be publicly traded on the stock market. Instead, a small number of investors—including the Public Investment Fund (PIF) and private equity firms Silver Lake and Affinity Partners—will fully own the company. However, recent indications suggest one of these three groups will end up with a significantly larger share than the others.

Saudi Arabia’s PIF Will Reportedly Own Over 93% of EA After Finalizing the Buyout

Okay, so the Wall Street Journal is reporting some crazy details about Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) and their potential takeover of Electronic Arts! Apparently, they’re aiming to own a massive 93.4% of EA. It’s not even a fair split for the remaining shares – Silver Lake is getting 5.5%, and Affinity Partners will have just 1.1%. The whole thing is going to cost the PIF around $29 billion, which is already huge, but it would be even more if you factor in the $5.2 billion they’ve already invested in EA. It’s wild to think about, especially since there are rumors that the PIF is starting to run low on cash after this deal, even with all the wealth backing them!

Image via EA

These numbers come from an antitrust filing in Brazil. Because EA operates worldwide, the acquisition needs approval from regulators in many countries. As the legal process moves forward, we can expect more documents like this to surface, providing further details about the deal. These regulatory reviews could also potentially block the acquisition altogether. So far, at least two U.S. senators have voiced concerns about “national security risks,” suggesting Saudi Arabia’s ownership of EA could give them access to private information and influence a large international audience. It’s unclear if these concerns will ultimately prevent the deal or change its terms, but based on Microsoft’s acquisition of Blizzard, the process is expected to be lengthy, potentially taking years to fully resolve.

Image via EA

Okay, so Saudi Arabia is really getting into gaming. Like, they’re now reportedly owning a huge chunk of EA – almost 93.4%! It’s not just that, though; they already had a big stake in Nintendo. They were even planning to host the first Olympic esports event, but that fell through shortly after the EA news – we don’t really know why, honestly. But they do still put on the Esports World Cup every year, so they’re clearly serious about this whole thing.

Image via EA

As of today, no one involved with the EA deal has responded to this new report. However, EA has said before that the deal won’t change its goals and that its creative teams will still have the freedom to make the games they want. Now, fans will have to wait and see how things unfold as the deal goes through the official approval process.

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2025-12-04 00:07