Saudi Arabia's PIF Reportedly May Merge EA with Another Major Gaming Company

Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, a new owner of Electronic Arts together with Silver Lake and Affinity Partners, reportedly considers merging it with Savvy Games to create a single gaming company.

According to a Bloomberg report, sources familiar with the business said PIF executives are thinking about creating a gaming giant "to ensure better coordination between its assets." However, the sources said the decision is not finalized, and the deal, which is only in discussion, might happen only after Savvy completes its $6 billion acquisition of Chinese mobile gaming business Moonton. Combining EA and Savvy Games Group would mark a major restructuring of Saudi Arabia's gaming investments.

Savvy Games is a Saudi Arabian games and esports company, best known for Monopoly GO! and Pokémon GO!. Earlier, Savvy Games acquired a mobile games studio, Scopely, known for popular titles such as Yahtzee With Buddies, Star Trek Fleet Command, Marvel Strike Force, Stumble Guys, and Scrabble Go. The company has also been exploring partnership opportunities in China and other Asian markets, with Brian Ward, who was CEO at the time, sharing ambitions for Savvy to become "the world's number one games and esports company." Recently, Ward stepped down, and Turqi Alnowaiser, deputy governor of PIF and head of its International Investments Division, became interim acting CEO.

PIF owns stakes in Nintendo, SNK, Activision Blizzard, Capcom, Take-Two, and Embracer Group. One of its most recent gaming deals is the $55 billion acquisition of Electronic Arts – the company behind The Sims, EA FC, and Madden NFL – as part of a group of investors, together with Silver Lake and Affinity Partners.

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