The Saudi Arabian Sovereign Wealth Fund will become the owner of almost all of EA after its buyout by investors
Two months ago, Electronic Arts (EA) announced that it would soon be acquired by a consortium of investors. At that time, it did not disclose the share each participant would receive as a result of the deal, but these details have become known from a recent company report to Brazil's antitrust regulator.
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According to The Wall Street Journal, which reviewed the report, after the acquisition, EA will almost entirely be in the hands of the Saudi Arabian Sovereign Fund (PIF) — owning 93.4% of the company. Other investors will get much smaller shares: Silver Lake will control 5.5% of EA, and Affinity Partners will have 1.1% of EA.
Notably, PIF has long been interested in EA. Since 2020, the fund has repeatedly purchased its securities, and as of today, it holds 9.9% of the company's shares in its portfolio. Interestingly, it has also previously invested in both Silver Lake and Affinity Partners.
The Wall Street Journal calculated that increasing the stake from 9.9% to 93.4% will cost PIF approximately $29 billion.
Previously, EA agreed with investors that the acquisition amount would exceed $55 billion: this includes $36.4 billion of the consortium's own funds and an additional approximately $20 billion in loans. The deal is expected to close by the end of June 2026, but it first needs approval from regulators and EA's shareholder meeting.