EA has seemingly upped the ante in their attempted takeover of Take-Two. According to Kotaku.com, SEC filings show that EA recently borrowed $1 billion from a few lenders, including Morgan Stanley, in order to further their attempted acquisition of Take-Two.

EA already has the finances in hand to finish out the deal with Take-Two. They currently have $2.3 billion in cash, short-term investments and cash equivalents. It raises the question of why EA would borrow more money if this is a deal that they can already afford. The only publicly visible answer may be that they are trying to flex their muscles a bit, and maybe even “bully” Take-Two into accepting a deal. Even that, however, is unclear.

Take-Two has not yet issued a statement regarding this new development, but EA’s Vice President of Communications, John Brown, downplayed the loan. He stated: “There’s no news here. This is just a process point of something we announced in February.” He claimed the reason for the loan was that it helped EA “maintain maximum flexibility for any opportunities.”

Even with Brown downplaying it, this remains an interesting development. Keep your internets locked on to TheGameReviews.com as more on this story develops.