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Trump extends deadline for TikTok sale to non-Chinese buyer to avoid ban Trump extends deadline for TikTok sale to non-Chinese buyer to avoid ban
(30 minutes later)
Deadline set by US president was supposed to be Saturday, with Trump now considering decreasing tariffs to get dealDeadline set by US president was supposed to be Saturday, with Trump now considering decreasing tariffs to get deal
Donald Trump on Friday afternoon extended by 75 days a deadline for the Chinese technology company ByteDance to sell US assets of the popular short-video app TikTok to a non-Chinese buyer or face a ban that was supposed to take effect in January under a 2024 law. Donald Trump said he will sign an executive order to extend the TikTok ban deadline. This is the second time the president will have delayed the ban or sale of the social media app, and will punt the deadline to 75 days from now.
“The deal requires more work to ensure all necessary approvals are signed,” the US president said, explaining why he was extending the deadline he set in January that was supposed to expire on Saturday. “We hope to continue working in good faith with China, who I understand is not very happy about our reciprocal tariffs.” The TikTok deal “requires more work to ensure all necessary approvals are signed”, Trump announced on his Truth Social platform on Friday.
China now faces a 54% tariff on goods imported into the US. Trump has said he would be willing to reduce tariffs on China to get a deal done with ByteDance. ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, issued a statement in response to the executive order: “ByteDance has been in discussion with the U.S. Government regarding a potential solution for TikTok U.S. An agreement has not been executed. There are key matters to be resolved. Any agreement will be subject to approval under Chinese law.”
Trump has said his administration was in touch with four groups about a prospective TikTok deal. He has not identified them. Congress passed a law last year forcing TikTok to either divest or sell its assets in the US. The law stemmed from concerns that the app’s Chinese owner, ByteDance, could use the social media platform to manipulate Americans. The first deadline to ban or force the sale of the app was 19 January. But, on his first day in office, Trump signed an executive order to delay that decision to 5 April. Now the new deadline will be in mid-June.
“We do not want TikTok to ‘go dark,’” Trump added. Earlier this week, the president met with potential buyers for TikTok and said his administration is “very close” to a deal. Among those who’ve reportedly thrown in bids are a consortium of investors led by the software giant Oracle, asset manager Blackstone, Amazon, Walmart, billionaire Frank McCourt, a crypto foundation, and the founder of the adult website OnlyFans.
The White House-led talks on the future of TikTok, which is used by about half of all Americans, are coalescing around a plan for the biggest non-Chinese investors in parent company ByteDance to increase their stakes and acquire the app’s US operations, Reuters has reported. TikTok is a tremendously popular social media app with 170 million users in the US. Investors and corporations see huge appeal with owning the app and its secretive algorithm.
The plan entails spinning off a US entity for TikTok and diluting Chinese ownership in the new business to below the 20% threshold required by US law, rescuing the app from a looming US ban, sources have told Reuters. ByteDance has said it has no plans to sell TikTok and in previous court filings said a divestiture “is simply not possible: not commercially, not technologically, not legally”.
Jeff Yass’s Susquehanna International Group and Bill Ford’s General Atlantic, both of which are represented on ByteDance’s board, are leading discussions with the White House. After announcing sweeping tariffs on dozens of countries, Trump hinted on Thursday aboard Air Force One that he might lessen the trade penalties on China if ByteDance were to approve a sale. The country faces a 54% tariff on goods imported to the US. “We have a situation with TikTok where China will probably say we’ll approve a deal, but will you do something on the tariffs. The tariffs give us great power to negotiate,” he said.
Walmart is also considering joining a group of investors in a deal for TikTok, an ABC News reporter said on social media. The big retailer, which had expressed an interest in investing in TikTok in 2020, did not immediately respond to a Reuters’ request for comment. In his Truth Social post Friday, Trump reiterated that sentiment, saying: “We hope to continue working in Good Faith with China, who I understand are not very happy about our Reciprocal Tariffs (Necessary for Fair and Balanced Trade between China and the U.S.A.!).
The biggest stumbling block for any deal for TikTok’s US business is Chinese government approval, with Beijing yet to comment. Sign up to TechScape
TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A weekly dive in to how technology is shaping our lives
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“We do not want TikTok to ‘go dark,’” he continued. “We look forward to working with TikTok and China to close the Deal. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”