Saudi Arabia obtained a major 5.01% stake in Nintendo in May 2023, in a move that lots of likened to ‘white washing‘ as the country reckoned with global allegations of human rights abuses. It followed investments through the country’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) in other game companies, including SNK, Take-Two, Activision, and EA. Slowly, Saudi Arabia continues to be increasing these stakes, recently raising its purchase of Nintendo to 7.08%, per Trading View.
The stake was also raised in January 2023 – even though the reasons remain unclear. While as being a shareholder means the PIF gains the benefits of annual dividends, and Nintendo gains financial support, it doesn't mean Saudi Arabia has any sway or influence within the company.
When the initial investment was initially revealed, Nintendo was reportedly unaware of who its newest investor was – and later told reporters it would not comment on individual shareholders. Notably, Nintendo is really a publicly-listed company, which means anyone can purchase shares inside it.
Over the final several years, Saudi Arabia has poured billions into gaming development, in order to support the global industry – but also allegedly as a means to ingratiate the nation with modern, pop culture-focussed audiences.
‘The Saudi government has spent vast amounts of dollars hosting major entertainment, cultural, and sporting events as a deliberate technique to deflect in the country's image like a pervasive human rights violator,’ Human Rights Watch alleged in 2023.
‘Bolstering reputation is big business. Pr firms explicitly sell the promise of a better reputation, but many other business relationships, particularly those involving prominent entertainers, athletes, and politicians, also offer valuable reputational benefits.’
Going forward, it’s likely the PIF will continue to expand via investments in a selection of game studios, developers, publishers, and adjacent companies. Be it stake in Nintendo will continue to develop is unknown.
