Washington [US], September 26: US President Donald Trump signed an executive order on September 25, affirming that the plan to sell TikTok in the US to domestic and foreign investors will address national security requirements under the 2024 law.
The move shows progress in President Trump 's efforts to promote the sale of TikTok 's US assets , but many details remain unclear, especially the issue of who will control the most important assets, according to Reuters on September 26.
Speaking at the White House , Mr. Trump said: "I spoke with President Xi Jinping of China . We had a good conversation, I told him what we are doing, and he said let's keep doing it. It will be run entirely by Americans."
President Trump said investors such as Larry Ellison, Rupert Murdoch and "about four or five world-class investors" would participate in the purchase of TikTok US.
US Vice President JD Vance said TikTok will be valued at about $14 billion, much lower than some analysts' estimates.
"There's been some pushback from China, but the fundamental thing we want to achieve is we want to keep TikTok open, but we also want to make sure that we protect Americans' data privacy as required by law," Vice President Vance told reporters in the Oval Office on September 25.
The White House did not disclose the basis for the new valuation. Previously, ByteDance, TikTok's Chinese parent company, valued the company at more than $330 billion. TikTok contributes a small portion of the company's total revenue.
According to analyst Dan Ives of financial company Wedbush Securities, by April 2025, TikTok could reach a value of 30-40 billion USD without taking into account the algorithm.
The issue of US national security continues to be at the center of debate. Republicans in the US House of Representatives said they needed to carefully review the agreement to ensure "full separation from China". "As the details are finalized, we must ensure this agreement protects American users from the influence and surveillance of groups affiliated with China," Reuters quoted Republican officials in the US House of Representatives as saying.
A group of investors, including Oracle and private equity firm Silver Lake, will hold about 50% of TikTok's US shares, Reuters reported, citing two people familiar with the matter. Meanwhile, a group of existing ByteDance shareholders is said to hold about 30% of the shares.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
