Trump Approves $14 Billion Sale of TikTok’s U.S. Operations to American Investors, Oracle to Oversee Security
The White House has announced that President Donald Trump has signed an executive order allowing for the sale of TikTok’s U.S. operations to a group of American investors. Vice President JD Vance revealed that the deal values TikTok US at approximately $14 billion.
The sale comes as a response to the necessity for TikTok to divest its American business or face potential ban in the country, under the terms of a national security law previously signed by former president Joe Biden. Trump’s executive order temporarily suspends the enforcement of this law for 120 days, allowing the divestiture plan to be executed.
ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, has yet to publicly comment on the deal or the executive order but issued a statement on September 19 indicating that they will comply with applicable laws to keep the app available for American users through TikTok U.S.
During a press briefing, Trump reported that he had spoken with Chinese president Xi Jinping and received his approval for the sale. “I spoke with President Xi; we had a good talk,” Trump said. “I told him what we were doing, and he said, ‘Go ahead with it.'”
The order outlines that TikTok’s U.S. operations will be restructured with a new board of directors, and the app’s recommendation algorithm, source code, and content moderation system in the US will be transferred to the control of its new owners. Oracle will take charge of the app’s security operations and provide computing services for TikTok US.
“It’s owned by Americans, and very sophisticated Americans,” Trump stated during the briefing. “This is going to be American operated all the way.”
Trump revealed that Oracle would be among the U.S. investors in TikTok US but did not disclose the full list of new owners. CNBC reports that Oracle, Silver Lake, and Abu Dhabi-based MGX will hold a 45% stake in TikTok’s US company.
“This deal really does mean Americans can use TikTok but actually use it with more confidence than they had in the past because their data is secure and it won’t be used as a propaganda weapon like it has in the past,” Vance said during the briefing.
Trump emphasized during the briefing that “every group, every philosophy, every policy will be treated fairly” when asked if the algorithm would show MAGA-related content following the deal.
Last week, Trump extended ByteDance’s deadline to divest TikTok’s U.S. operations or face a potential ban, marking the fourth time he has extended the deadline. Trump initiated the push to ban TikTok in 2020, and the idea later received bipartisan backing during Biden’s administration.
