Videogame Mega-Publisher Electronic Arts plans to take the company private in a deal that, according to reports from the Wall Street Journal, Reuters, and Financial times.
All three points of sale mention anonymous sources to report that the deal could be announced next week, with Silver Lake, Saudi -Aarabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) and the Affinity partners of Jared Kushner who are allegedly interested in investing. The Wall Street Journal says that the move “would probably be the biggest buy -out for leverage ever.”
The Saudi Pif already had an interest of around 9 percent in EA from a year ago, making it one of the largest shareholders in the company. That fund also has important investments in gaming giants such as Nintendo, Take-Two, Activision Blizzard, Capcom, Nexon and Koei Tecmo that are by the Savvy Games Group.
The EA share price immediately jumped around 15 percent on Friday afternoon, after a month in which the share price had remained relatively flat.
EA became public with an IPO on the Nasdaq stock exchange in 1990, and in 1996 market capitalization had risen to $ 1.61 billion. Before today's share price fluctuating the company around $ 43 billion, driven by franchises such as such as such as such as Madden NFL” EA FC (Earlier FIFA),),, The SimsAnd Battlefield.
