Trump’s son-in-law involved as gaming giant EA to be “privatized”; $50 billion valuation sets record for leveraged buyouts.

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Gaming giant EA is in advanced negotiations regarding a potential privatization deal worth as much as $50 billion. This deal could not only become the largest leveraged buyout in history but also signals a major shift in the global gaming industry landscape.

According to media reports on September 26, EA, known for sports games such as "FIFA" and "Madden NFL," is negotiating a privatization deal. The report, citing sources, states that the deal could be announced as soon as next week.

If the deal goes through, its scale would not only make it one of the largest global deals of 2025 to date, but could even surpass the 2007 privatization of Texas utility company TXU, setting a new record for leveraged buyouts.

The report notes that the acquisition is led by a consortium consisting of private equity firm Silver Lake Capital, Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF), and Affinity, the investment firm of Jared Kushner, Donald Trump's son-in-law, with JP Morgan responsible for arranging the financing.

Driven by news of the deal, EA’s stock jumped nearly 15% on Friday to close at a historic high of $193.35, pushing the company’s market value to around $48 billion.

Powerful Acquisition Consortium

Silver Lake Capital is a private equity firm focused on the technology sector, managing about $110 billion in assets and already has investments in the gaming industry.

The company owns shares in game development software company Unity Software, and EA is a major customer of Unity.

Saudi PIF already holds about 10% of EA. In recent years, the fund has raised its investment profile, including founding the LIV Golf professional league to compete with the PGA Tour.

PIF formed its Savvy Games division in 2021 to focus on acquisitions and investments in gaming and esports.

In 2023, the fund acquired California game publisher Scopely for nearly $5 billion, and also holds a 6.5% stake in competitor Take-Two Interactive.

Trump’s son-in-law Kushner founded Affinity Partners in 2021, headquartered in Florida and backed by investors including the PIF.

(Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and Trump’s daughter Ivanka)

Historic Largest Leveraged Buyout Coming Soon

The report emphasizes that if this privatization deal is finalized, it will be one of the largest deals announced by 2025 so far, and could break the record for the largest leveraged buyout (LBO) in history.

Data shows that the previous record was set in 2007 when multiple private equity firms acquired TXU for about $32 billion (excluding assumed debt).

After the 2008 financial crisis, major leveraged buyouts vanished for a time due to the underperformance of some large M&A deals.

In 2021, a private equity consortium spent over $30 billion to acquire medical supplies firm Medline, reviving market attention.

Today’s leveraged buyouts usually carry less debt than those before the financial crisis.

In addition, large deals now often involve sovereign wealth funds or other major investors, rather than just private equity firms, intended to prevent ownership disputes over company strategy.

EA’s Recovery Creates Acquisition Opportunity

This acquisition negotiation comes at a time when growth in the video game industry is slowing.

After explosive growth during the pandemic, the industry has cut tens of thousands of jobs in the past three years. EA has not been immune, undergoing three major rounds of layoffs since 2023.

EA’s performance has also been volatile.

Reports say that earlier in 2025, the company’s stock took a hit due to the poor performance of its latest soccer game, "EA Sports FC 25." However, on its recent earnings call, EA stated that its overall portfolio delivered “better than expected results.”

Currently, Wall Street is closely watching the company’s upcoming release of "Battlefield 6" on October 10, which will directly compete with Microsoft’s "Call of Duty" series in the shooter game market.

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