Trump Approves Deal Allowing U.S. Investors to Take Over TikTok, Addressing National Security Concerns and Paving Way for Asia-Pacific Summit Meeting with China’s Xi Jinping

In a significant development, President Trump has given his approval for a consortium of primarily American investors to acquire TikTok, a move that addresses national security concerns and allows the app’s millions of U.S. users to continue utilizing the platform.

The short video-sharing app, owned by Beijing-based ByteDance, faced potential banishment in the United States due to a law passed last year mandating divestiture or elimination over national security concerns.

Trump’s executive order deems the transaction as meeting the “qualified divestiture” standards set by Congress, thereby ensuring the app is no longer under foreign control. Under the new deal, ByteDance will retain less than 20% ownership, with the venture to be managed by a board of directors adhering to privacy protection regulations for American users.

The president noted that there would be “approximately four or five” investors involved in the new entity, naming Oracle founder Larry Ellison, Rupert Murdoch of News Corp, and Dell Technologies founder Michael Dell, along with investment firm Silver Lake.

Vice President J.D. Vance, leading the administration’s efforts to broker a deal, estimates the company’s valuation at around $14 billion, considered a favorable return for investors. While details regarding data privacy protection under the new arrangement remain scant, Vance emphasized that the agreement ensures American entities and investors will manage the algorithm, preventing its misuse as a propaganda tool by any foreign government.

TikTok boasts approximately 170 million users in the U.S., representing nearly half of the population. Concerns about the app’s Chinese ownership led to worries about potential data collection on Americans or manipulation via propaganda or disinformation.

The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, enacted last April, identifies apps run by foreign adversaries as posing “unacceptable national security risks,” and deems transfer of ownership as the only viable solution. The law necessitated ByteDance’s sale of TikTok to avoid a ban in the U.S., a ruling upheld by the Supreme Court despite TikTok’s free speech challenge. However, Trump temporarily halted enforcement of the ban with his first executive order on Inauguration Day.

Since then, the Trump administration has been negotiating for control of TikTok to shift into American hands. The deal approved on Thursday marks a turnaround for the president, who initially aimed to shut down TikTok during his first term. The president now expresses favor toward the app, acknowledging its role in boosting his youth voter support in the 2024 election and potentially paving his return to the White House.

The fate of TikTok has been intertwined with the broader power struggle between the United States and China, encompassing negotiations on trade and tariffs. Vance reported some resistance from the Chinese side in finalizing the deal, but Trump stated that he had a productive conversation with Chinese leader Xi Jinping last week, receiving approval for the transaction.

Trump and Xi are scheduled to meet in about five weeks at an Asia-Pacific leaders’ summit in South Korea, with plans for Trump to visit China next year and Xi to reciprocate with a trip to the U.S. “at an appropriate time.”