According to reports, Electronic Arts (EA), one of the world’s largest publicly traded companies and a video game publisher, is in talks for a deal valued at approximately $50 billion to take the company private. According to sources familiar with the matter, if the deal goes through, it would be the largest leveraged buyout in history.
The consortium driving the acquisition of EA includes several prominent financial institutions, such as the private equity firm Silver Lake, Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund Public Investment Fund (PIF), and Affinity Partners, the investment firm led by Jared Kushner. The Saudi PIF is already a significant shareholder in EA, holding nearly 10% of the company’s shares.
The deal could be announced as early as next week, and on Friday, EA’s stock price surged by nearly 15%. Analysts suggest that the interest from the Saudi PIF is strategically aligned with the kingdom’s broader economic diversification effort, which includes a substantial focus on expanding its influence in the global gaming and sports entertainment industries.
Taking the company private could allow EA to escape the pressure of quarterly earnings reports and enable the new owners to implement long-term strategic reforms to unlock greater value from its vast portfolio of intellectual property, including major adjustments to the monetization and distribution strategies for its key franchises. This deal reflects the ongoing trend of large-scale mergers and acquisitions, as well as the growing interest of private equity in the high-growth video game industry.
