On Sunday, March 9th, US President Trump stated that the US government is in contact with four different buyers regarding the sale of the Chinese social media platform TikTok. He emphasized that all options are good choices.
A new law went into effect on January 19th, requiring TikTok’s parent company ByteDance to sell the platform for national security reasons, or face a ban. Since then, the fate of TikTok has been uncertain.
Shortly after taking office on January 20th, President Trump signed an executive order postponing the implementation of the law by 75 days.
When asked if TikTok is close to reaching a sale agreement, Trump said to reporters on Air Force One, “It’s possible.”
“We are in talks with four different groups, many people are interested…the conditions of these four groups are favorable,” Trump added.
TikTok and ByteDance did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Reuters.
It is currently unclear which investors are included in the four groups mentioned by Trump. However, recent public figures expressing interest in acquiring the platform include former Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt, Wyoming entrepreneur Reid Rasner, and reality TV show host Kevin O’Leary.
Former US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has expressed interest in inviting a group of investors to collectively acquire TikTok.
US tech entrepreneur Tinsley also stated that he has assembled an investor group ready with over $20 billion in funding to bid for TikTok.
TikTok was launched by ByteDance in 2016 under the name “Douyin.” In 2018, it officially entered the international market and quickly became one of the most popular short video platforms in the US.
As of 2024, TikTok’s monthly active users in the US have exceeded 170 million, meaning that more than half of Americans regularly use the app. Analysts estimate TikTok’s value to be as high as $50 billion.
ByteDance is a technology company headquartered in Beijing. Although ByteDance claims that TikTok operates in the US in compliance with local laws and stores US user data domestically, the US government and intelligence agencies have long been concerned that the company may be influenced and controlled by the Chinese government.
According to China’s National Intelligence Law, Chinese companies are obligated to “support, assist, and cooperate with national intelligence work,” which means that if requested by Beijing, ByteDance may have to hand over TikTok user data.
Many US officials are concerned that TikTok’s algorithm could be influenced by Beijing, controlling content recommendations, suppressing criticism of the Chinese Communist Party, and even pushing specific political agendas to influence US elections.
According to Chinese law, large companies in China must establish a “party branch,” and ByteDance internally has a Chinese Communist Party committee, which further reinforces concerns about the company being influenced by the CCP.
Trump believes that if TikTok is acquired by a US company, its data storage and management will be subject to US laws, reducing the risk of data flowing to China.
Earlier this year, Trump also emphasized that he understands TikTok’s popularity among American youth, but in order to maintain control of the platform, ByteDance must sell half of its shares to American buyers, or else it will have to disappear from the US.