All articles tagged with #public investment fund
LIV Golf has filed for Chapter 11 with liabilities of $500m–$1bn, aiming to reorganize into a majority player-owned league backed by BC Partners and to emerge in early 2027, with a $50m loan from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund to support the process; nine golfers are listed as unsecured creditors.
Reportedly, LIV Golf plans to seek Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as soon as Sept. 7, with the Saudi Public Investment Fund winding down funding after 2026 and offering settlements to players worth pennies on the dollar; the move signals a transition to a smaller, 2.0-era LIV with lower purses and potential player equity, while financiers like BC Partners weigh financing options, staff layoffs have begun, and players face a mix of settlements, restructurings, or unsecured-claims paths depending on negotiations and future contracts.
LIV Golf is reportedly nearing a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing to fund a leaner 2027 circuit, as talks with BC Partners continue while the Saudi Public Investment Fund is unwilling to provide new funds. The strategy may include a pre-packaged deal with players and a revamped LIV 2.0, but attracting enough top players remains uncertain. A New Jersey filing is being discussed, with potential debtor-in-possession financing under $100 million and a plan to roll up assets using billions in net operating losses, backed by BC Partners’ planned investment effort and interest from Liberty Strategic Capital.
Greg Norman, LIV Golf’s former CEO, says he is gutted by LIV’s demise as Saudi-backed funding winds down; with Norman replaced in 2025, LIV is pursuing a lead investor deal amid a compressed timeline, a scaled-back schedule, and smaller purses as it seeks to secure continued backing.
LIV Golf is scrambling to survive beyond 2026 after CEO Scott O’Neil disclosed a lead investor with a signed term sheet, but the funding is far smaller than Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. The league faces canceled events and star players weighing moves as it seeks a viable, player-influenced model, hoping to retain stars like Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm, secure world ranking status, and forge new partnerships to sustain itself.
Electronic Arts has completed a $55 billion leveraged buyout led by the Saudi Public Investment Fund with Silver Lake and Affinity Partners (led by Jared Kushner), taking EA private and paying $210 per share to stockholders. The deal adds about $18 billion in debt and has the new owners planning roughly $700 million in annual cost cuts, including organizational efficiencies, which has sparked expectations of mass layoffs as the company restructures under private ownership.
LIV Golf has signed a term sheet with BC Partners’ credit division to anchor a “LIV 2.0” investment as the Public Investment Fund winds down financing, with a definitive agreement possible next month to cover the tour through 2030. The deal aims to reassure star players—who are owed potentially hundreds of millions under existing contracts—that they will stay with a restructured, equity-backed league, potentially settling legacy liabilities at a discount via a pre-packaged bankruptcy to clear the path for new investors. Negotiations involve multiple parties and aim to have players collectively own a majority of the tour while ensuring they do not pursue further payouts from the PIF.
Electronic Arts completed a $55 billion leveraged buyout led by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, taking the company private at $210 per share and delisting from NASDAQ. CEO Andrew Wilson named Cam Weber as chief studios officer and David Tinson as COO (and presidents) as part of a leadership overhaul to drive growth and innovation, including AI initiatives.
A Saudi-led consortium including the Public Investment Fund completes a $55 billion leveraged buyout to take Electronic Arts private, one of the largest such deals in history, with financing borrowed to close the deal and ongoing questions about debt, governance, and potential changes to the company’s strategy and content.
Electronic Arts has completed a $55 billion leveraged buyout to become a private company, with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund owning roughly 93.4% and $20 billion of debt financing—the largest LBO on record. The deal is expected to push EA to rely more on bankable, big-franchise releases (Battlefield, EA Sports, The Sims) and less on smaller, experimental titles as it charts its next chapter.
GDQ announced a sponsored SNK showcase, but canceled it within hours after community concerns over SNK’s Saudi ownership and human-rights issues. The organization apologized, pledged to strengthen sponsor vetting, and stated it would not accept funds from this sponsorship; the event had raised about $2.41 million for Doctors Without Borders.
Amid LIV Golf’s uncertain future after Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund pulled funding, Bryson DeChambeau says he won’t rejoin the PGA Tour this season, intends to grow his YouTube audience (with multilingual dubbing options) and play a limited schedule if LIV continues, and has floated a broader plan for golf—potentially a merger-like collaboration between the PGA Tour and DP World Tour—to unite the sport.
Graeme McDowell says LIV Golf could shed its Saudi-linked, 'nasty' narrative now that the Public Investment Fund is withdrawing funding, noting it may become more viable as a business and could downsize to survive, while focusing on LIV as a competitive golf product and acknowledging the impact on players and staff amid the uncertain future.
A podcast discussion argues that Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund funding of LIV Golf, videogaming ventures, and other entertainment properties is faltering, risking major assets and soft-power aims as divestments ripple through sports and the gaming industry, with concerns about authenticity, profitability, and potential deal disruptions (e.g., EA) if the money dries up.
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund will end subsidising LIV Golf after this season, prompting a strategic pivot with a new board and a plan to sell the league’s 13 teams to brands and investors amid doubts over a more than $5 billion investment; the DP World Tour signals openness to reintegrating LIV players under tighter rules, while players debate schedules, sanctions, and Ryder Cup eligibility, highlighting tensions between LIV and traditional tours.