Trump’s Plans for TikTok Acquisition
President Donald Trump has mentioned that a group of “very wealthy people” is prepared to purchase the widely-used video-sharing app TikTok, pending approval from the Chinese government. The identities of these potential buyers have not yet been disclosed.
In an interview broadcast on Fox News, Trump disclosed that this group of wealthy individuals is ready to acquire TikTok. He noted that any deal would need to be approved by Beijing but expressed optimism that Chinese President Xi Jinping would ultimately allow it.
The future of TikTok in the U.S. has been unclear since the introduction of a 2024 law designed to ban the app unless ownership is transferred to a non-Chinese entity. This legislation stemmed from worries about the Chinese government’s potential to influence content and access private information from American users.
This month, Trump extended the deadline for TikTok’s U.S. operations for the third time since the Supreme Court affirmed the TikTok Act shortly before its second inauguration in January. The new deadline is now September 17th. The Protection of Americans from Foreign Hostile Management Application Act (PAFACA) is set to be enforced starting January 19th.
Following the initial deadline, TikTok briefly went offline in the U.S. but bounced back after Trump granted extensions. The president, who praised TikTok for boosting his appeal among younger voters in the previous election, hopes the app can persist under new ownership.
Several potential buyers have shown interest in TikTok, including prominent figures like Oracle’s Larry Ellison and companies such as Applovin and Perplexity AI. However, it remains uncertain whether its current owner, ByteDance, is willing to sell, especially since such transactions would likely need Chinese government approval.
Plans for a deal that would have separated TikTok’s U.S. business from ByteDance while allowing the latter to keep a minority ownership have stalled, particularly after Trump’s announcement of tariffs on China, according to a report from Reuters. Previously, Trump had suggested a strategy where American stakeholders would purchase TikTok and sell a 50% stake to the U.S. government as part of a joint venture.
