The Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund has decreased its stake in Nintendo from 8.58% to 7.54%, according to a new report from CNBC. This contradicts many reports citing that the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund would increase its stake in Nintendo.
Many of the recent news reports arose after a Kyodo News interview with Savvy Games Group vice chairman Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Sultan al-Saud. Previous speculation about the PIF increasing its stake in Nintendo also raised the company’s shares to a record high earlier in the year.
The fund initially acquired 5.01% of stakes in Nintendo before acquiring another 1.06% of stakes in January 2023. On February 15, 2023, the fund increased its stake in Nintendo to 7.08%. Just two days later, the PIF purchased more shares in Nintendo, raising its stake once more to 8.26%.
The PIF is one of the largest outside shareholders of Nintendo, as it commits to diversifying an oil-dependent economy. The stake purchases in 2022 and 2023 were made for investment purposes only, with Saudi Arabia gaining confidence in Nintendo and its future prospects.
Holiday 2024 will likely be one of the final seasons with Nintendo Switch being Nintendo’s main hardware on the market. A Nintendo Switch successor will be revealed within the fiscal year, according to Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa. Reports suggest the next-generation console will launch after March 2025 as the Nintendo Switch 2.
