EA says all regulatory approvals for its Saudi PIF acquisition ‘have been obtained’, deal should be done next week

Electronic Arts says it’s secured all regulatory approval for its acquisition deal which will see Saudi Arabia owning the lion’s share of the company.

EA confirmed in September 2025 that it was to be acquired by a group of private investors, including Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund (PIF), in a deal valuing the company at around $55 billion.

Now, in an SEC filing published on Thursday, EA says the deal has passed regulatory scrutiny and can now go ahead, which it expects will happen next week.

“As of July 30, 2026, all regulatory approvals required to complete the Merger have been obtained,” the filing reads. “Electronic Arts currently expects the Merger to close on or about the close of trading on August 4, 2026.

“Completion of the Merger remains subject to the satisfaction or waiver of the remaining customary closing conditions set forth in the Merger Agreement.”

When completed, the deal will be the largest ever leveraged buyout in history (a leveraged buyout is an acquisition where most of the cost is covered by borrowed money, with the target company’s own assets and future cash flow used as security to pay back the loan).

The acquisition will see EA going private again, after going public on the NASDAQ stock exchange 36 years ago in March 1990. It will see the company being fully owned by “an investor consortium comprised of PIF, Silver Lake, and Affinity Partners”.

Saudi Arabia will own 93.4% of EA once the deal is done

The PIF – or Public Investment Fund – is the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia and is reportedly central to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s goal of making the Saudi economy less reliant on proceeds from oil. The fund already owns billions of stock in other video game companies, such as Take-Two, and owns other companies such as SNK.

Three months after the initial announcement was made, a filing confirmed that the PIF will own 93.4% of EA once the deal is completed. Silver Lake Partners – an investment fund run by a US global private equity film based in Silicon Valley – will own 5.5% of the shares, according to the filing.

Affinity Partners – an American investment firm formed by Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, which mainly focuses on investing in US and Israeli companies, with most of its funding coming from the Saudi Arabian government – will own the remaining 1.1%.

In recent years Saudi Arabia officials have said its investments in the games industry will help to modernize the kingdom, but they have come with negative fallout due to the country’s highly criticised human rights abuses.

Notably, the crown prince has been accused by US Intelligence of ordering the brutal murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The country has also has historically cracked down on female activists and LBGTQI+ rights, with legal repercussions for LGBTQI+ individuals including imprisonment, fines or the death penalty according to Amnesty International.

Concern around this led to EA-owned developer Maxis – the studio behind The Sims series, which is known for its inclusivity and character diversity – stating publicly that its values will not be affected by EA’s upcoming change in ownership.

“From day one, our values have been the foundation behind every choice we’ve made,” the studio wrote in January. “They have guided every risk we have taken, every feature we’ve created, and every truly wild story our players have brought to life. They reflect our vision for this franchise and the passion of the teams around the world that have built, and are still building, The Sims.”