TikTok's Parent Company Strikes Deal to Evade U.S. Ban

Fri Dec 19 2025 21:26:44 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

ByteDance has reached an agreement with American investors to facilitate TikTok's operation in the U.S., aimed at addressing national security concerns and preserving its user base.

TikTok's parent company, ByteDance, has signed a deal with U.S. investors, including Oracle and Silver Lake, to secure its American operations amidst national security anxieties. The agreement, closing on January 22, marks a significant shift away from Washington's previous demands for a sale. With ByteDance retaining a minority stake, the deal aims to reassure U.S. users while underlining the increasingly complicated U.S.-China relations. Some lawmakers and users express skepticism about the deal's effectiveness in protecting user privacy.

TikTok's Chinese owner ByteDance has signed binding agreements with US and global investors to operate its business in America, TikTok's boss told employees on Thursday.

Half of the joint venture will be owned by a group of investors, including Oracle, Silver Lake and the Emirati investment firm MGX, according to a memo sent by chief executive Shou Zi Chew.

The deal, which is set to close on January 22, would end years of efforts by Washington to force ByteDance to sell its US operations over national security concerns.

It is in line with a deal unveiled in September, when US President Donald Trump delayed the enforcement of a law that would ban the app unless it was sold.

In the memo, TikTok said the deal will enable over 170 million Americans to continue discovering a world of endless possibilities as part of a vital global community.

Under the agreement, ByteDance will retain 19.9% of the business, while Oracle, Silver Lake and Abu Dhabi-based MGX will hold 15% each.

Another 30.1% will be held by affiliates of existing ByteDance investors, according to the memo.

The White House previously said that Oracle, which was co-founded by Trump supporter Larry Ellison, will license TikTok's recommendation algorithm as part of the deal.

The deal comes after a series of delays. In April 2024, during President Joe Biden's administration, the US Congress passed a law to ban the app over national security concerns, unless it was sold.

The law was set to go into effect on January 20, 2025, but was pushed back multiple times by Trump while his administration worked out a deal to transfer ownership.

Trump said in September that he had spoken on the phone to China's President Xi Jinping, who he said had given the deal the go-ahead.

The platform's future remained unclear after the leaders met face to face in October.

The app's fate was clouded by ongoing tensions between the two nations on trade and other matters.

TikTok has become a bargaining chip in the wider US-China relationship, said Alvin Graylin, a lecturer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

With recent softening tensions, Beijing's sign-off on the structure and algorithm licensing now looks less like capitulation and more like calibrated de-escalation, letting both capitals claim a win at home.

The White House referred the BBC to TikTok when contacted for comment.

Oracle and Silver Lake declined to comment. The BBC has contacted MGX for comment.

The deal drew critiques from Senate Democrat Ron Wyden of Oregon, who said it wouldn't do a thing to protect the privacy of American users.

Under the terms, TikTok's recommendation algorithm is set to be retrained on American user data to ensure feeds are free from outside manipulation.

Some users expressed caution at the prospect of new investors. Small business owner Tiffany Cianci, who has over 300,000 followers and nearly four million likes on the platform, hopes the incoming investors will maintain the same user experience for entrepreneurs.

Citing a membership of over seven million small businesses leveraging its platform, TikTok's future holds considerable significance for its American users amidst evolving circumstances.