Paramount Skydance has secured nearly US$24 billion in financing from three Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds to facilitate its planned acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, as Variety reported.
According to sources close to the arrangement, the Public Investment Fund will contribute about US$10 billion, with additional funding from state-backed investment entities in Qatar and Abu Dhabi. This financing will support Paramount Skydance’s bid for Warner Bros. Discovery, which is valued at approximately US$111 billion.
The deal, pending regulatory approvals, is anticipated to conclude by the end of the third quarter in 2026. To discuss the proposed acquisition, Warner Bros. Discovery has arranged a special shareholders meeting for April 23.
Initial reports indicated that Paramount’s offer would fully utilise the US$24 billion commitment from Middle Eastern investors. However, specifics of the funding distribution among the three funds were not disclosed. Warner Bros. Discovery’s board accepted Paramount’s US$31-per-share bid in February after Netflix declined to make a competing proposal.
In prior regulatory documents, Paramount Skydance indicated that the participating sovereign wealth funds would hold non-voting equity stakes, without any governance rights, including board representation. The company contended that this arrangement would keep the transaction outside the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, which assesses foreign investments for national security concerns.
Despite these assurances, the deal has attracted political attention in Washington. Recently, several Democratic senators urged the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to conduct a thorough review of the foreign-backed investment, citing concerns about potential influence over significant U.S. media assets such as CBS and CNN.
Nevertheless, reports suggest that Paramount executives believe the relatively small ownership stakes—projected to be well below 25%—will likely avert a formal FCC review.
The proposed acquisition marks one of the largest media consolidation moves in recent years, underscoring the growing interest from Gulf sovereign funds in global entertainment holdings, even as regulatory and political scrutiny looms over such international transactions.
