Ever heard of Electronic Games Development Company and Mohammad Bin Salman?

Ladies and gentlemen, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia’s foundation is to buy a lion’s share in SNK, a huge deal, and investment in the works, through his gaming firm Electronic Games Development Company.

Saudi Arabia is pouring some serious money into the gaming industry and one such deal has surfaced where The Mohammad Bin Salman Charity Foundation is all set to grab a controlling stake in a famous Japanese game firm; SNK.

Now let’s see what the numbers have to tell us. The non for profit foundation has bought shares worth 813 million Saudi Riyals which is $233 million, a 33% stake in SNK. This investment has valued the company at a whopping $669 million.

The details of the deals were shared by the foundation’s official website but the unofficial information got surfaced and was being circulated for more than 24 hours but there is more to it. As the word spread, the SNK Corp’s share price on KOSDAQ surged and reached 16,500 Korean won ($14.93), a 30% increase.

Electronic Games Development Company, a wholly-owned subsidiary company made this investment. Both these companies had previously worked together on game development and youth training exchange program where Saudi youth traveled to Japan for training.

The deal agreement further adds that the foundation will buy an added 17.7% share of SNK in the future which means that the foundation will become an owner of 51% of the company.

Electronic Games Development Company – Saudi Arabia -Mohammad Bin Salman

Electronic Games Development Company – SNK – Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia – Mohammad Bin Salman

The foundation’s and Mohammad Bin Salman goal is to invest in projects that will help “cultivate and encourage learning and leadership in youth for a better future in Saudi Arabia.”

The deal is promising but it would be interesting to see how things unfold in the future given Saudi Arabia’s poor standing related to human rights and a high-profile gruesome murder of a Saudi journalist.

Earlier this year, Riot Games also had to back out of an agreement with Saudi megacity Neom after massive public backlash. The sponsorship agreement between Neom and Riot Games was labeled as “sports-washing” a desperate attempt by the Saudi’s to improve their poor reputation abroad.