US President Donald Trump on Sunday (local time) said his administration is in talks with four different possible buyers for the sale of TikTok’s US business.
This comes after uncertainty looms over Bytedance-owned TikTok’s future in the United States. The social media video app faces a deadline of April 5, either to strike a deal for its operations in the US or face a nationwide ban.
Even though Trump did not mention which four companies are involved, he did mention that a “lot of people want it” and “all options were good.”
According to a Bloomberg report, the US is TikTok’s most important market and last year, the video platform app was estimated to be worth $50 billion.
Former US President Joe Biden signed a bipartisan law, which required TikTok to either sell its US business or to face a nationwide ban, owing to the data security concerns. TikTok and its parent company Bytedance, then filed a lawsuit against the US government and claimed that the security concerns were overblown and the law should be struck down because it violates the First Amendment.
Soon after the lawsuit, Trump joined the platform and started posting his election campaign-related content. In December 2024, after winning the elections, he asked the US Supreme Court to pause TikTok’s ban from going into effect.
TikTok users in the US saw the app turn black on January 18, 2025, as a potential ban was set to take place on January 19, a day before President Trump took office.
After coming to office, Trump ordered a pause and allowed TikTok to find a buyer in the US.
What more did Trump say
Reports suggest that last week, Trump said he was “open to extending the deadline, if necessary.” However, he feels that a deal was possible soon, a sentiment which he echoed in his Sunday announcement.
Trump also claimed that the US government should get a 50 per cent stake in the company.