By Ampamya Ronah

An acquisition deal for Electronic Arts (EA), one of the world’s largest video game companies, has been officially completed by a consortium led by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) and investors including Jared Kushner, son-in-law of U.S. President Donald Trump, in a deal valued at $55 billion.

The company announced this week that the deal has been finalized after receiving approval from the European Union a few days earlier. This was the last remaining regulatory approval required to complete one of the largest deals in the video game industry.

EA is known for games under the “EA Sports FC” brand (formerly “FIFA”), as well as “The Sims,” “Battlefield,” and “Madden NFL.” As a result of the deal, it will become a private company after 36 years of being listed on the stock exchange.

The buyer consortium includes the Saudi Public Investment Fund, Affinity Partners (led by Kushner), and Silver Lake Partners.

Kushner said that EA has created stories, characters, and communities that have become part of the daily lives of hundreds of millions of people, adding that the investors are excited to support it in reaching new audiences, inspiring the next generation of creators, and expanding ways of connecting through games.

The deal comes as part of the expansion of Saudi investments in video games and esports, alongside sports, media, and entertainment. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is known for his interest in video games and playing them, which gives the deal a dimension that goes beyond pure financial investment. EA was founded in 1982 by Trip Hawkins, a former Apple employee, and Andrew Wilson has served as its CEO since 2013.

Despite its broad portfolio of games, its annual revenues in recent years have ranged between $7.4 billion and $7.6 billion amid intensifying competition from companies including Epic Games.

Microsoft had previously acquired Activision Blizzard, one of EA’s main competitors, about three years ago for roughly $69 billion. After becoming a private company, EA will no longer be required to publish quarterly results, which reduces public scrutiny and the pressure to meet short-term financial targets.

The company employed around 14,500 people until last year, before laying off several hundred employees in May of last year.

With this deal, Saudi Arabia strengthens its presence in the global video game and digital entertainment market by owning a company behind games used and followed by hundreds of millions of people.