Electronic Arts shareholders have approved a $55 billion acquisition. They voted overwhelmingly in favor of a buyout led by a group that includes Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), Silver Lake, and Affinity Partners. This decision came during a special meeting of stockholders and marks the end of EA’s forty-year run as a publicly traded company. Investors will receive $210 per share in cash, a considerable premium that likely contributed to the almost 94% approval rating from voters.
The size of this transaction is a significant moment for the gaming industry’s mid-to-high-end market. As EA transitions to private ownership, it will no longer be tied to the strict demands of Wall Street’s quarterly earnings calls. Though Andrew Wilson is expected to stay on as CEO, this change allows the leadership team to focus on long-term creative strategies that were hard to justify to public shareholders wanting quick returns.
However, the deal still needs to clear international regulatory reviews. While getting internal approval is a big step, antitrust regulators in the United States and abroad will now examine it. Given the PIF’s aggressive growth in the gaming sector, which includes significant stakes in Capcom, Nintendo, and the Savvy Games Group, regulators will likely scrutinize how consolidating such a major publisher under a sovereign-backed entity affects the market.
For most players, the immediate effects of this sale should be minor, but the long-term impact on EA’s development pipeline could be significant. Without the pressure from public stock prices, the company might have more freedom to take risks on new intellectual properties or extend development times for its key titles. If the deal receives final regulatory approval as expected in early 2026, EA will officially close its chapter as a public entity, marking one of the biggest changes in corporate gaming history.
