NKN Media sells 5% to 1XL's Dhiraj Jain at AED 300M valuation

DUBAI — NKN Media has taken an AED 15 million strategic investment from Dhiraj Jain, founder and chairman of 1XL, in exchange for a 5% stake that prices the Dubai-headquartered media company at AED 300 million.

NKN Media is not a startup in the classic sense. The company distributes television content and builds original IPs, and it is best known in the UAE as the company behind Falcons of Majlis, a reality funding show. The new capital positions it as a content owner rather than a pure distributor at a time when regional media groups are trying to keep IP onshore.

The cheque comes from an individual strategic backer rather than an institutional media or venture fund. The announcement broke on 28 September via exchange4media and was picked up by Business Today and VCCircle before reaching GCC-scoped outlets on 1 October, so the deal arrives in this feed later than the trade press cycle.

Watch whether NKN Media uses the Jain cheque to bankroll new original formats or an acquisition of its own, and whether more individual Gulf-India strategic cheques start pricing media IP assets at venture-style multiples.

Business Today reported the investment.