Saudi Sovereign Fund Plans to Merge EA and Savvy to Create Global Gaming Giant
nashnova research
Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund is considering merging the newly acquired EA with its gaming arm Savvy Games, a deal that would create one of the world's largest game companies — but the plan remains under review and hinges on Savvy first closing its $6 billion Moonton acquisition.
What is this merger actually trying to do?
PIF wants all its gaming assets — M&A, development, IP licensing — run through a single entity instead of two separate ones.
This means → franchises like *Madden NFL*, *The Sims*, and *Pokémon Go* would sit under one roof, aimed squarely at the $214 billion global gaming market.
In plain terms = PIF doesn't want EA and Savvy playing separate hands; it wants to shuffle both decks together.
Why can't it happen yet?
Sources say the merger is unlikely to start before Savvy closes its $6 billion acquisition of Moonton (沐瞳科技), the Chinese mobile-game studio.
Savvy has received $38 billion from PIF in recent years, spending $4.9 billion on mobile publisher Scopely and roughly $3.5 billion on Niantic's gaming business.
This means → Savvy has a backlog of undigested mega-deals; each must close before a merger can layer on top.
How does this fix EA's biggest weakness?
EA's strength has always been console and PC titles. Mobile is its weak spot — it paid $2.1 billion for Glu Mobile, then cancelled the related mobile projects.
Savvy's portfolio is almost entirely mobile (Scopely, Moonton, Niantic).
In plain terms = EA makes big-screen games; Savvy makes phone games. Combine them and the gap disappears.
What do the leadership changes signal?
PIF completed its $55 billion leveraged buyout of EA — a gaming-industry record — with the deal closing recently.
Savvy CEO Brian Ward left earlier this month. PIF vice-president Turqi Alnowaiser stepped in as interim CEO.
This reflects a telling move: Alnowaiser was PIF's public point person on the EA acquisition — putting him in charge of Savvy makes the merger intent hard to miss.
What is the biggest obstacle?
Microsoft's $69 billion Activision Blizzard deal drew antitrust scrutiny across multiple jurisdictions. An EA–Savvy merger would face similar regulatory hurdles.
At the same time, PIF has begun pulling back from some high-risk bets, shifting toward more return-focused allocation.
This means → whether the merger goes ahead depends on two tests: whether regulators in multiple countries approve, and whether PIF itself ultimately decides gaming is a sound investment — or an expensive hobby.
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