April is fast approaching, leaving potential buyers of TikTok’s American business with little time to finalize a deal. The sale is being driven by American legislation, with Donald Trump previously delaying its enforcement on the first day of his second presidential term. If no agreement is reached by April 5, and Trump does not extend the current ban suspension, TikTok’s operations in the U.S. could face another halt.
According to Reuters, the leading contenders for TikTok’s U.S. assets are institutional investors Susquehanna International Group, General Atlantic, KKR, and Coatue. Susquehanna and General Atlantic are already on ByteDance’s board of directors, TikTok’s parent company. Their strategy appears to focus on separating TikTok’s American assets while increasing their own stakes. This would reduce ByteDance’s Chinese-controlled share below the 20% threshold set by American regulations. Negotiations continue, and we’ll keep you updated as developments unfold.
Current Investors and Infrastructure Control
ByteDance’s shareholder structure shows that as of last year, international investors held 58% of its shares, reminds NIX Solutions. Founder Zhang Yiming retained 21%, while just over 21% was distributed among employees, including nearly 7,000 Americans. A key element of the negotiations involves ensuring Oracle’s continued control over TikTok’s technical infrastructure in the U.S. Oracle’s role is to guarantee data security for American users and prevent any unauthorized interference from China in the app’s algorithms.
Donald Trump has stated that discussions are ongoing with four potential investor groups but did not specify names. Reports suggest at least two other interested parties: billionaire Frank McCourt and popular YouTuber Jimmy Donaldson, widely recognized as Mr. Beast. Additionally, Perplexity has recently indicated a nominal interest in acquiring TikTok assets. As the deadline nears, it remains to be seen which group will succeed, yet we’ll keep you updated as more details emerge.