Saudi Arabia actually reduced its stake in Nintendo

Previous reports indicated that Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) could increase its stake in Nintendo's shares, but the wealth fund has actually decreased its amount of shares.

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Two days ago, Japanese publication Kyodo News reported that Saudi Arabia could buy up more gaming stock in Nintendo, as per a small snippet of conversation with crown prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Sultan Al-Saud during Tokyo Game Show 2024. As it turns out, the Saudi sovereign wealth fund has now reduced its stake in the Mario maker.

As per new regulatory documents filed in Japan, Saudi Arabia's PIF has shed an entire percentage point of its shares in Nintendo. The PIF now has 7.54% of shares as opposed to the 8.58% it previously had as of June 2024. This equates to roughly 97.6 million shares (worth about $5.3 billion) currently held by the PIF as versus the 111.45 million shares (about $6 billion) that it formerly held. This represents a decrease of approximately 1.69 million shares, or some $700 million in worth.

The Kyodo News report had been amended shortly after, with the Saudi prince saying: "It's important to keep the communication going so you get there in the right way. We don't want to rush into anything."

Through its Savvy Games Group subsidiary, the Saudi PIF has made numerous sizable investments in gaming, ranging from buying up stakes in companies like Electronic Arts, Koei Tecmo, and even acquiring major groups like Scopely, the team behind the mega-hit $3 billion Monopoly Go! title.