A22 co-founders Fadi Arab and Farah Merhy secure AED 1.2 million for 20% equity in the Season 4 premiere, bringing the first homegrown character-IP company from the region into the Shark Tank spotlight.
Dubai, UAE – October 2026, Dubai-based A22, the consumer IP company behind Dabubu, has secured investment on Shark Tank Dubai. Fadi Arab, CEO and Co-Founder of A22, and co-founder Farah Merhy closed a deal of AED 1.2 million for 20% equity with Toufic Kreidieh in the first episode of Season 4, which aired on Dubai TV on Monday October 12, 2026. The pitch drew four offers from the Sharks, and the founders chose to partner with Kreidieh.
The deal puts a new kind of regional business in front of the Sharks. A22 is not building a toy line. It builds culturally native collectible brands from the Arab world and takes them to global markets. Its model follows the world’s leading character ecosystems: the IP is the asset, and every product, collaboration and drop is an expression of it.
Shark Tank Dubai highlights entrepreneurs who show a spirit of innovation and determination. Arab and Merhy’s pitch made a simple case. For generations, the characters and collectibles that shaped childhood across the region came from elsewhere. A22 exists so that the next global icon can come from here.
“We walked into the Tank with one question: why hasn’t the Arab world produced its own global character brand yet? Our region has one of the richest storytelling traditions in the world. What it lacked was a contemporary IP that was ours from day one. Dabubu proved the appetite is there. This partnership gives us the backing to build the next brands and take them further, faster.” said, Fadi Arab, CEO & Co-Founder, A22.
A22’s first IP, Dabubu, was conceived in Dubai and launched publicly in December 2025. The wide-eyed, sharp-toothed character has a warm yet sassy and resilient personality that is distinctly of this region. It has since reached 43 million people organically, sold out its first release in two hours, and expanded from collectibles into confectionery, fashion and accessories. Children’s centres across the region have independently approached the brand to collaborate.
The company built for scale from the start. Dabubu’s trademarks are registered in the United States and China. Its limited ‘Golden Drop’ edition, in which ten of 2,000 units carried a real 18K gold tag, showed the scarcity-driven, experience-led release model behind the world’s most sought-after collectible IPs.
“Dabubu was the proof of concept. The UAE is investing in the creative economy as a pillar of its future, and we want A22 to show what that can produce: original IP with real cultural roots, built here, and loved everywhere.” said, Farah Merhy, Co-Founder, A22.
The investment will support the launch of A22’s next collectible universes.
