Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) is reportedly planning to combine Electronic Arts with its subsidiary, Savvy Games Group.
Sources told Bloomberg that the PIF is considering the merger to “ensure better coordination between its assets.” Savvy Games’ current portfolio includes Scopely, ESL Gaming, FaceIt, and a $1 billion stake in Embracer Group.
Savvy also holds stakes in Nintendo, Capcom and Nexon, Take-Two Interactive, Activision Blizzard, and Koei Tecmo.
Savvy is currently acquiring the Chinese mobile games company Moonton for $6 billion, a deal announced in March. Sources indicated that merging EA into Savvy is unlikely until this acquisition is complete.
Both the PIF and EA declined to comment to Bloomberg, while a spokesperson for Savvy did not respond to requests for comment.
The PIF led the $55 billion leveraged buyout of EA, completed last month, making it the developer’s majority owner.
The acquisition of EA was announced last September, led by a group of investors including PIF, Silver Lake, and Affinity Partners.
In a letter to staff, EA said that its “mission, values, and commitment to players and fans around the world would remain unchanged.”
“EA will maintain creative control, and our track record of creative freedom and player-first values will remain intact,” it said.
“The Consortium believes in our vision, our leadership and our focus on creating games, stories, and content that reflect a range of experiences and delivering them to our global player community. They’re investing in the creativity that defines EA.”
Last week, Brian Ward stepped down as CEO of Savvy Games. Turqi Alnowaiser, deputy governor of the PIF and head of its International Investments Division, was appointed interim CEO.
“As Savvy embarks on its next period of transformational growth, this is the right time for new leadership for that evolution,” Ward wrote in a note to staff.
Ward served as CEO of Savvy Games since its establishment in 2021 and oversaw a $37.8 billion investment to expand Saudi Arabia’s presence in the global games industry.