TikTok’s Chinese owner, ByteDance, has signed binding agreements to create a joint venture that will transfer operational control of TikTok’s U.S. app to American and global investors, a major step toward averting a U.S. ban and ending years of political and regulatory uncertainty.
Under the agreement, which is set to conclude on January 22, 2026, ByteDance will retain a 19.9 percent stake, while Oracle, Silver Lake and Abu Dhabi-based MGX will each hold 15 percent. A further 30.1 percent will be owned by affiliates of existing ByteDance investors.
Half of the joint venture will be owned by a group of U.S. and global investors, according to a memo sent to employees by TikTok. US President Donald Trump said in September he had spoken with China’s President Xi Jinping, who approved the deal, though uncertainty lingered after the leaders met in October amid broader U.S.-China trade tensions.
Shou Zi Chew, TikTok, CEO, in his memo said, “Over 170 million Americans continue to discover a world of endless possibilities as part of a vital global community,” as reported by the BBC and CNN.
According to APnews, the White House had previously said Oracle will license TikTok’s recommendation algorithm as part of the arrangement. ByteDance’s agreement aligns with a deal unveiled in September, when Trump gave TikTok temporary reprieve by delaying enforcement of a law that would ban the app unless it was sold. That law, passed by Congress in April 2024 during President Joe Biden’s administration, had been due to take effect on January 20, 2025, but was repeatedly pushed back.
Readers will recall W.Media reported in April 2024, that the US Senate had approved a bill that gave ByteDance 270 days to sell its stake in the app. If the company failed to dance to the Senate’s tune, TikTok could end up getting banned in America. The bill was passed with 79 Senators voting in its favour, and 18 against it.
The deal has drawn criticism from Senator Ron Wyden, who said “It would not do a thing to protect the privacy of American users, it’s unclear that it will even put TikTok’s algorithm in safer hands,” as reported by Reuters.
The deal affects an app used regularly by more than 170 million Americans, many of whom have used it to become content creators and “influencers” and thus generated an income for themselves. The deal marks a turning point since President Donald Trump sought to ban TikTok over national security concerns in August 2020.