Trillions of sovereign capital sneak into the game: Saudi Arabia and other countries use the acquisition of Warner Bros. (WBD.US) through Palaemon (PSKY.US).

Three Middle Eastern funds have committed to investing $24 billion to provide the initial "ammunition" for the acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD.US) by Paramount Sky (PSKY.US), but these are just the figures on paper. Due to their long-term "cross blood transfusion" with private equity firms behind the scenes, funds may continue to flow through the fund's intermediary layer, with the actual total exposure expected to be higher than $24 billion. Earlier this week, Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund (PIF) teamed up with the Qatar Investment Office and jointly with the little-known L'imad Holding Co. in Abu Dhabi to provide financial support for this hostile takeover. These funds are regulated by wealthy Gulf countries that have long injected large amounts of capital into global acquisitions. For example, Apollo Global Management Inc. (APO.US) is one of the institutions involved in providing up to $54 billion in financing for Paramount's acquisition bid. Abu Dhabi's Mubadala Investment Co. has a long-standing cooperation with Apollo, while the risk investment department of Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund (PIF) has also invested in funds managed by Apollo. The Saudi sovereign wealth fund has also joined forces with the Qatar Investment Office and Abu Dhabi's Lunate to inject billions of dollars into Affinity Partners. It is worth mentioning that Jared Kushner's company has ties to Mubadala, and the two have previously jointly invested in a fast-food company based in Brazil, with an entity under Mubadala participating in the deal. Their move on Warner Bros. Discovery comes just months after the Saudi sovereign wealth fund and Affinity partnered to propose another high-profile bid - a $55 billion acquisition of Electronic Arts Inc. (EA.US). Kushner reportedly facilitated the deal and played a key role in the negotiations. In this deal, billionaire Larry Ellison, closely connected to the region, also appears on the relevant list. Gulf investors intend to provide funds in the form of non-voting equity investments and agree to waive all governance rights, which will help ensure that the acquisition does not require approval from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). The latest moves in the Middle East reinforce a trend that has been going on for years - entities in the region are increasingly becoming powerful financial backers behind global transactions. According to data from the Global SWF sovereign wealth funds platform, the five wealth funds controlled by Abu Dhabi, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia invested a total of $82 billion last year, accounting for over 60% of the total investments made by sovereign wealth funds globally. These funds have supported transactions in various fields from finance to artificial intelligence, as governments hope to create new growth engines beyond oil. If the acquisition of Warner Bros. goes through, it will also bring another effect: expanding soft power. Once the deal is finalized, Middle Eastern investors will gain stakes in well-known assets including Warner Bros. television and film studios, HBO business, and CNN cable channels. This attractive prospect eventually brought together funds from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar for the first time in several years. It should be noted that the total sovereign wealth of these three countries slightly exceeds $3 trillion, and transactions involving all three countries are rare. Diego Lopez, founder and managing director of Global SWF, said, "This means either the deal is too good to pass up, or there is a third party - such as Affinity Partners - brokering all parties." As of December 11, 2025, the acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery has turned into a fierce bidding war: Netflix (NFLX.US) reached a preliminary agreement with Warner Bros. board on December 5 to acquire Warner Bros.' film and television studio and streaming business HBO Max for approximately $82.7 billion, and divest cable channels. However, Paramount launched a "hostile takeover" bid on December 8, bypassing the Warner Bros. board, directly offering shareholders a full cash bid of $30 per share (totaling approximately $108.4 billion) to acquire all of Warner Bros' assets, including linear cable channels that Netflix does not want. Paramount claims that its proposal can provide higher value, faster transaction certainty, and potentially less anti-trust resistance. The Warner Bros. board is currently reviewing Paramount's proposal but is still maintaining its recommendation for the Netflix deal. Both transactions are subject to strict scrutiny by US anti-trust regulatory agencies and have raised national security and political concerns due to investments from foreign sovereign wealth funds such as Saudi Arabia and public statements by former President Trump.