TikTok has agreed to sell its US business to a newly formed joint venture controlled by a group of American investors, under a deal expected to be completed on 22 January, according to an internal memo cited by Bloomberg.
Under the transaction, Oracle, Silver Lake, and Abu Dhabi-based MGX will collectively hold 45 percent of the new US entity, divided equally among them. Existing US-based investors linked to ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, will own roughly one-third of the business, while ByteDance itself will retain a 19.9 percent minority stake.
TikTok chief executive Shou Zi Chew said that following the transaction, the US joint venture will operate as an independent company built on TikTok US’s existing data-security framework. The new entity will have full authority over US data protection, algorithm security, content oversight, and software integrity, addressing long-standing regulatory concerns surrounding the platform’s operations in the United States.
At the same time, Chew noted that TikTok’s US-based global affiliates will continue to manage product interoperability at the international level, as well as selected commercial activities, including e-commerce, advertising, and marketing, ensuring continuity across TikTok’s global ecosystem.
The deal marks a significant restructuring of TikTok’s ownership and governance in the US, reflecting ongoing efforts to balance national security concerns with the platform’s commercial expansion, while opening the door for greater participation by US and regional investors in one of the world’s most influential social media platforms.
