Prince Salman’s Foundation Becomes SNK’s Largest Shareholder

Coming through his foundation, Saudi Prince Mohammad bin Salman has acquired 96% of SNK, the developer behind Fatal Fury, King of Fighters and Metal Slug.

The move is one in many recent forays into video games for the Suadi Prince, who has invested in Capcom, Nexon and different esports companies. The Saudi based Savvy Games group has been set up to develop esports in Saudi Arabia.

The official reasoning for investing in games is to diversify the Saudi economy, which is heavily reliant on oil exports; however critics have pointed to an ulterior motive of changing the public image of Saudi Arabia and its royal family.

Prince Salman was implicated in the murder of Jamal Khashoggi by a U.S.A. intelligence report, while Saudi law denies rights to and targets multiple groups, such as the systematic persecution of the Christian minority population.