Piers Morgan is closing in on a £100m valuation for his YouTube-owned media company Uncensored after securing a major round of investment from some of the most influential figures in global media and finance.
Sky News has announced that Morgan is completing a fundraising of around $30m (£22.5m), giving Uncensored a pre-money valuation of around $130m (£97m), a remarkable jump for a company centered around a single, high-profile presenter, less than a year after he left Rupert Murdoch’s empire.
The financing round brings with it well-known supporters. Raine Group, the powerful US commercial bank known for advising on the sale of Chelsea FC and Manchester United, is set to become a major shareholder, with co-founder Joe Ravitch expected to join Uncensored’s board.
In addition to a number of global family offices, Greek media tycoon Theo Kyriakou, who owns the Antenna Group, is also investing. Marketing veteran Michael Kassan advises on advertising strategy and can personally invest.
A source close to the deal said confirmation of key details was imminent.
Morgan is targeting a “billion-dollar” valuation
While Morgan’s personal stake was not disclosed, insiders believe the emerging $130 million valuation will put his stake well into the tens of millions.
The ambition is far higher, said one figure: “The ambition is to turn this into a billion-dollar company within a few years.”
Morgan is already building a leadership structure to expand Uncensored into a broader digital media company. Plans include launching multiple editorial “branches” under the Uncensored brand, spanning sports, history, technology and possibly politics, with celebrity presenters hosting each channel.
Morgan’s strategy was supported by the blockbusters’ viewership. Interviews with Cristiano Ronaldo and Novak Djokovic have generated hundreds of millions of views after the athletes reposted clips on social media.
The uncensored YouTube channel now has 4.3 million subscribers, around half of them from the USA. A surprisingly small proportion of viewers are British, with notable followings in the Middle East, South Africa and Asia – a demographic that has convinced Morgan that global audiences will support journalism beyond traditional national silos.
His access to major political figures, including President Donald Trump, whom he has repeatedly interviewed, is also expected to contribute to Uncensored’s growing international appeal.
Morgan severed ties with Rupert Murdoch’s News UK earlier this year in a deal that gave him full control of the Uncensored channel. A four-year revenue share agreement now allows News UK to receive a share of advertising revenue until 2029, while Morgan focuses on turning Uncensored into a powerhouse in its own right.
Previously, as part of his contract with Murdoch, he wrote columns for The Sun and New York Post, hosted TalkTV and published his most recent book, Woke Is Dead, with HarperCollins.
Morgan’s ambitious expansion comes amid seismic shifts in the media landscape. Netflix agreed this week to an $83 billion takeover of Warner Bros., while Sky is in talks to buy ITV’s broadcast division and the Daily Telegraph could soon merge with the Daily Mail.
Traditional publishers such as Reach, owner of the Daily Mirror and Daily Express, now have valuations of just £176m, barely double the emerging value of Uncensored.
Morgan believes this market dynamic opens the door for personality-driven media brands to thrive: “Owning the Uncensored brand gives my team and I the freedom to grow it into a standalone company… The US election makes it clear that YouTube is an increasingly powerful and influential media platform.”
This weekend he added: “I’m thrilled that some of the global media industry’s most experienced and successful players share my ambitious vision for Uncensored. This is the future of modern media.”
