Trump says US has a buyer for TikTok

President Donald Trump on Tuesday introduced an settlement between the U.S. and China to maintain TikTok working within the United States, with three sources aware of the matter saying the deal was related to 1 mentioned earlier this yr.

The settlement requires TikTok’s American belongings to be transferred to U.S. homeowners from China’s ByteDance, probably resolving a saga that has lingered for almost a yr.

A deal for the favored social media app, which counts 170 million U.S. customers, would signify a breakthrough in months-long talks between the 2 greatest economies as they search to defuse a wide-ranging commerce warfare that has unnerved world markets.

“We have a deal on TikTok … We have a group of very big companies that want to buy it,” Trump stated at a White House briefing, with out offering additional particulars. The announcement comes a day earlier than a September 17 deadline to promote or shut down the quick video app.

The fundamentals of the new deal, additionally just like April, embrace that ByteDance will preserve the only largest possession stake at 19.9%, just below the regulation’s 20% threshold, two of the sources stated.

While the broad phrases are anticipated to stay the identical, the sources did say they have no idea what the ultimate deal would precisely appear to be, given the potential for last-minute adjustments.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent informed CNBC on Tuesday the industrial phrases of the deal had, in essence, been accomplished since round March with simply a few particulars left to be ironed out.

“This deal wouldn’t be done without proper safeguards for U.S. national security,” Bessent stated. “It seems as though we were also able to meet the Chinese interest.”

CNBC reported Tuesday that the deal is predicted to be closed inside the subsequent 30 to 45 days, and that the settlement will embrace present traders in TikTok’s China-based father or mother, ByteDance, and new traders.

The particulars are consistent with Reuters’ reporting in April that the deal would spin off TikTok’s U.S. operations into a new firm based mostly within the U.S. and majority-owned and operated by U.S. traders.

Any settlement could require approval by the Republican-controlled Congress, which handed a regulation in 2024 throughout the Biden Administration that required TikTok’s divestiture because of fears that its U.S. person information might be accessed by the Chinese authorities, permitting Beijing to spy on Americans or conduct affect operations by means of the app.

The Trump administration has declined to implement the regulation because of worries it will anger TikTok’s large person base and disrupt political communications, as an alternative extending the divestiture deadline on three separate events.

Trump, who has credited TikTok with serving to him win re-election final yr and has 15 million followers on his private account, was anticipated to increase the deadline for the fourth time. The White House additionally launched an official TikTok account final month.

A deal for TikTok, which had been within the works within the spring, was placed on maintain after China indicated it will not approve it following Trump’s bulletins of tariffs on Chinese items.

Washington has stated that TikTok’s possession by ByteDance makes it beholden to the Chinese authorities.

But the corporate has stated U.S. officers have misstated its ties to China, arguing its content material advice engine and person information are saved within the U.S. on cloud servers operated by Oracle, whereas content material moderation choices that have an effect on American customers are additionally made within the U.S.

CNBC reported on Tuesday that Oracle will preserve its cloud take care of TikTok. Reuters reported earlier this yr that the White House was engaged on a plan to faucet Oracle, together with a group of outdoor traders, to regulate the app’s operations.

As a part of the plan, Oracle would have been accountable for addressing nationwide safety points, Reuters had reported.

Oracle shares pared some features on Tuesday following the information and had been final up 1%.

A framework settlement was reached by officers from each nations on Monday. A ultimate affirmation on the deal is predicted on Friday in a name between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Trump stated in March that his administration was in contact with 4 totally different teams on TikTok’s sale. Microsoft, Amazon billionaire Frank McCourt and a consortium led by OnlyFans founder have been among the many bidders, in line with studies.