The Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund became the Nintendo Co’s largest outside shareholder., in the Gulf State’s latest move to reduce its dependence on oil.
the sovereign wealth fund now owns 8.3% of the Kyoto-based gaming company, according to a statement, increasing a position that stood at just over 6% at the beginning of the year. That puts Saudi Arabia ahead of Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund and second only to Nintendo’s own stake.
Saudi Arabia is making an effort to enter the esports and gaming industry. Most notably, he created Savvy Games Group with a budget of $38 billion and industry veterans at the helm.
“The purchase of Nintendo, as well as investments in video game companies around the world, are part of Saudi Arabia’s long-term project to be less dependent on oil”, stated Akira Takatoriya, a consultant who works with Japanese companies that export pop culture content to the Middle East.
Nintendo’s last purchase of stock was made for investment purposes, according to the notification.