Donald Trump-backed deal sees TikTok agree to sell US entity to American investors
The deal, set to close on January 22, would end years of efforts to force the app's Chinese parent ByteDance to divest its US business over national security concerns.
The TikTok logo is seen on a smartphone screen in this illustration photo. (File Photo)
TikTok has signed an agreement to sell its US business to a group of American investors, a move that would allow the video app to continue operating in the United States, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters.
The deal is backed by US President Donald Trump, and is expected to close on January 22, the memo said.
TikTok chief executive Shou Zi Chew told staff that TikTok and its Chinese parent company ByteDance had signed binding agreements with Oracle, Silver Lake and Abu Dhabi-based investment firm MGX.
Under the deal, a new TikTok US joint venture will be created. A group of new investors, including Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX, will together hold 50% of the company, with each owning about 15%, the memo said. Affiliates of existing ByteDance investors will hold 30.1%, while ByteDance will retain a 19.9% stake.
White House officials said Oracle would licence a version of TikTok’s recommendation algorithm as part of the agreement. Oracle already manages large amounts of data collected from TikTok’s US users.
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Oracle was co-founded by Larry Ellison, a supporter of Trump. His involvement has drawn attention to the growing influence of wealthy business figures in US media and technology companies.
Trump said earlier this year that he had spoken with Chinese President Xi Jinping about the deal. “We had a very good talk,” Trump said, adding that Xi had given approval for the agreement, according to Reuters.
In October, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Washington and Beijing had “reached a final deal on TikTok”.
During his first term as president in 2020, Trump threatened to ban TikTok, citing China’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic. Concerns over US national security later led Congress to pass a law banning the app unless ByteDance sold its US operations. That law was signed in April 2024 by then president Joe Biden.
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The ban was due to take effect on January 20, 2025, but its enforcement was delayed several times while the Trump administration worked to finalise a sale of TikTok’s US business, Reuters reported.
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The TikTok logo is seen on a smartphone screen in this illustration photo. (File Photo) 
