TikTok Signs Trump-Backed Deal to Sell US Entity to American Investors

Essential brief

Key facts

TikTok’s US business will be jointly owned by Oracle, Silver Lake, MGX, ByteDance, and existing ByteDance investors.

Oracle will license TikTok’s recommendation algorithm and manage US user data as part of the deal.

The ownership shift raises concerns about increasing control of US media platforms by pro-Trump billionaires.

The deal follows years of political pressure and legal threats to ban TikTok over national security concerns.

Implementation of a US ban on TikTok has been delayed multiple times to facilitate this ownership transition.

Highlights

TikTok’s US business will be jointly owned by Oracle, Silver Lake, MGX, ByteDance, and existing ByteDance investors.

Oracle will license TikTok’s recommendation algorithm and manage US user data as part of the deal.

The ownership shift raises concerns about increasing control of US media platforms by pro-Trump billionaires.

The deal follows years of political pressure and legal threats to ban TikTok over national security concerns.

TikTok has finalized a deal to sell its US business to a consortium of American investors, including Oracle, Silver Lake, and Abu Dhabi-based MGX, ensuring the app's continued operation in the United States.

According to an internal memo seen by the Associated Press and Reuters, the transaction is expected to close on January 22.

The new joint venture will be structured with 50% ownership held by the consortium—Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX each holding 15%—while 30.1% will be owned by affiliates of existing ByteDance investors, and ByteDance will retain 19.9%.

Oracle, co-founded by Larry Ellison, a known supporter of former President Donald Trump, will license TikTok’s recommendation algorithm and expand its existing role managing TikTok’s US user data.

This ownership shift has sparked concerns about the growing influence of pro-Trump billionaires in American media, as Ellison’s son is involved in major changes at CBS, alongside Elon Musk’s control of X (formerly Twitter), Mark Zuckerberg’s stewardship of Instagram and Facebook, and Jeff Bezos’s ownership of the Washington Post.

The deal follows a protracted negotiation period that began under the Trump administration, which had threatened to ban TikTok over national security concerns related to China.

Trump claimed to have secured approval from Chinese President Xi Jinping in September 2024, and the US Treasury Secretary later announced a final agreement in October.

Despite Congress passing a ban on TikTok in April 2024, signed into law by President Joe Biden, its implementation has been repeatedly delayed to allow time for this ownership transfer.

The deal represents a significant attempt to address US government concerns about data security and foreign influence while preserving TikTok’s presence in the American market.