Silver Lake Partners and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) have held discussions about acquiring gaming software developer Unity Software in a potential $25bn take-private transaction, according to a report by Reuters citing people familiar with the matter.

The consortium reportedly approached Unity in recent weeks, prompting the company to engage an investment bank to evaluate its options. Silver Lake, which already owns approximately 8% of Unity, invested up to $400m in the business in 2017. Discussions remain preliminary, with no certainty that a transaction will proceed.

The potential acquisition would mark another major investment in the gaming sector for Silver Lake and PIF, which were part of the consortium behind the $55bn take-private of Electronic Arts completed in August. The investors reportedly also have interests in gaming companies Scopely and Niantic, both of which use Unity's technology.

Unity, whose software powers thousands of video games and real-time 3D applications, recently reported a 32% increase in quarterly revenue to $622.1m, alongside its first GAAP quarterly profit since listing in 2020. A successful acquisition would rank among the largest software leveraged buyouts in recent years.