It is no secret that Saudi Arabia is betting big on video games as part of its strategy to diversify the country’s oil-centric economy. Here is how much money it has already invested in the sector across the globe.
The Financial Times published a report on Saudi Arabia’s gaming ambitions, saying that the country has spent almost $8 billion on M&A deals and acquiring stakes in major game and esports companies over the past 18 months.
All deals are led by Savvy Games Group, a wholly owned subsidiary of Saudi Arabia’s billion Public Investment Fund. The fund is $650 billion and is chaired by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Savvy’s two biggest deals to date are:
- A $1 billion investment in Embracer Group (it currently owns an 8.1% stake in the Swedish holding company);
- Recently announced $4.9 billion acquisition of mobile developer Scopely (known for Marvel Strike Force and Star Trek Fleet Command).
On top of that, the firm has already invested in many Western and Asian game companies, including Nintendo, Capcom, NCSoft, Take-Two, Eelectronic Arts, and Activision Blizzard.
The Public Investment Fund currently plans to invest $37.8 billion in the global games industry — $13 billion will go to M&A Deals and $18 billion to minority acquisitions.
“It’s a bulldozer approach. The industry in Saudi Arabia is nascent: they have to build it literally from the ground up,” Ampere Analysis games analyst Piers Harding-Rolls told the Financial Times.
Through such an aggressive investment strategy, Saudi Arabia wants to become home to 250 game companies and create 39,000 jobs. By 2030, the country expects the sector to contribute 1% to gross domestic product.