The Saudi Arabian state fund PIF is expanding its influence in the games sector and is taking over 5 percent of Nintendo shares.
The sovereign wealth fund PIF of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has according to a Reuters report 5 percent stake in Japanese video game giant Nintendo (Switch, Super Mario) Bought. Previously, the desert state already had shares in Capcom (resident Evil, Monster Hunters) and acquired from South Korean online games giant Nexon.
By the end of 2021, Saudi Arabia had already invested several billion dollars in shares in the market-leading US publishers Activision-Blizzard, Electronic Arts and Take-Two. In January, the fund took over the Cologne-based e-sports organizer ESL Gaming for $1 billion (analysis).
The sovereign wealth fund PIF, chaired by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, wants to make his country less dependent on fossil fuels. Organizations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch continue to accuse Saudi Arabia of massive human rights violations despite the reforms it has initiated. In March alone, more than 80 prisoners were executed in a single day.
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