Saudi PIF shifts $12 billion in gaming investments to Savvy

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund has moved to consolidate its expansive gaming investments, shifting about $12 billion worth of shares, including its stake in Nintendo, to its Savvy Games subsidiary.

Savvy, which was created in 2021 with a cash stockpile of $38 billion, is the backbone of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s plans to dominate global gaming.

The move to bring more of the PIF’s gaming investments under one roof indicates a desire to further elevate Savvy’s status in the industry.

“These transfers will move the stewardship of PIF’s games investments to Savvy, given Savvy is a leading games organization for the PIF and a core component of the National Gaming and Esports Strategy,” Amar Batkhuu, a Savvy spokesperson, told Bloomberg, noting that the transfer has been planned for a long time.

Savvy’s investments include Niantic, the developer of mobile hit “Pokemon Go” and “Monopoly Go” developer Scopely Inc., as well as several esports plays, which have had mixed success.

Most recently, it has been in talks with TikTok owner ByteDance to buy its Shanghai Moonton Technology unit, one of the world’s most popular mobile developers. 

The company’s success was somewhat overshadowed last year by the PIF’s own blockbuster deal to take gaming titan Electronic Arts private in a $50 billion leveraged buyout backed by private equity firm Silver Lake and Jared Kushner’s Affinity Partners.