Carlyle is to sell video game developer Jagex PE to CVC Capital Partners and Haveli Investments, a firm focused on the technology sector. Although financial details have not been disclosed, the FT reports that the value of the deal is around £900m.

Jagex is known for its RuneScape MMORPG titles, which boast a community of 2.4 million active subscribers and 1 million users who can play them for free on PC and mobile platforms. The video game developer and publisher, which was founded in 2000 in Cambridge, currently employs approximately 700 people.

Over the past ten years, Jagex has undergone several ownership changes. In 2016, it was acquired by a consortium of Chinese investors and became part of Zhongji Holding, after which it was sold to US-based Macarthur Fortune Holding for USD 530 million in 2020. The following year, it changed hands again to PE fund Carlyle, which for a while considered listing the company on the London Stock Exchange.

The deal comes at a time of a surge in mergers and acquisitions in the gaming sector, which saw increased activity during the Covid-19 pandemic.For example, Savvy Games Group, owned by a Saudi Arabian sovereign wealth fund, bought US game developer Scopely for US$4.9 billion last year, and in October Microsoft completed its acquisition of Activision Blizzard for a total price of US$68.7 billion.