Global Entrepreneurial Reality TV Show 'Shark Tank' Comes to Egypt

Dangerous waters will soon rise in the Middle East as American reality TV show, Shark Tank, makes its regional debut in Egypt.

The multi-Emmy award-winning programme - in which budding innovators pitch their product and service ideas to a panel of venture capitalists, affectionately referred to as ‘sharks’ - has carved itself into the public consciousness with its cutthroat attitude, and perhaps more importantly the way it has made entrepreneurship appear accessible to a wider audience. Looking to recreate that success in the Middle East, Sony Pictures will soon open registrations for entrepreneurs to come to Egypt and compete before a panel of regional judges, who have yet to be announced.

Shark Tank first aired in 2009 as an adaptation of ‘The Tigers of Money’ (2001), the Japanese TV show from which the format originated. Since its blow-out success in Japan, ‘The Tigers of Money’ inspired a number of off-shoots across the world, including two in the Middle East: ‘Dragons’ Den: Al Aareen’ (2007) in Lebanon, and ‘El Mashroua’ (2013) in Egypt. Although this new programme would technically be the second time the format appears in Egypt, it would be the first time it does so under the ‘Shark Tank’ name.