Lars Wingefor, CEO of Asmodee and Dark Horse parent Embracer Group, has released a letter defending the company’s decision to raise $1.05 billion from Savvy Gaming Group, an arm of Saudi Arabia sovereign wealth fund Public Investment Fund, which invests funds on behalf of the government of Saudi Arabia (see “Asmodee, Dark Horse Parent Raising $1.05B from Saudi Fund”).
Wingefor made the following points in his letter:
- Prior to the Saudi investment, as a public company Embracer had institutions from other non-democratic countries in the Middle East and North Africa and Asia as shareholders.
- Savvy Gaming Group has investments in Embracer’s competitors and “has ambitions within gaming that are genuine in supporting the global ecosystem for our industry that are consistent with and important the values and culture of our industry.”
- Embracer required additional capital to support its plans to stay an independent company headquartered in Sweden, and Savvy Gaming Group was one of "only a handful of players in the world providing this type of sizable long-term equity capital.”
- Current management controls a majority of the votes in the company, and will continue to run the company as it has in the past.
Wingefor also discussed future plans for the company. He said he is open to a board seat for Savvy Gaming Group CEO Brian Ward, and emphasized that fundraising is not over; Embracer will continue to explore additional sources of capital from both strategic and non-strategic investors.
Criticism of involvement with the Saudi fund, which represents a government that is believed to have ordered the murder and dismemberment of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018, has reached a high pitch recently, brought to the fore by the news that high profile golfers have defected from the PGA to join a Saudi-backed golf league in exchange for big paydays.
