Could we finally be close to an end to the TikTok-U.S. saga?
Today, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has reported that a framework has been established for a final TikTok sell-off deal, which could see the app sold to an as-yet unnamed U.S. investor, while also enabling its Chinese-owned parent company ByteDance to maintain a key ownership stake.
According Bessent, the proposed deal is “between two private parties,” with the key commercial terms already agreed upon, ahead of this week’s TikTok sell-off deadline in the U.S.
U.S. President Donald Trump, meanwhile, has said that he will be meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping later this week, where he will finalize a TikTok deal, among other discussion points.
As per Trump (via Truth Social):
“The big Trade Meeting in Europe between The United States of America, and China, has gone VERY WELL! A deal was also reached on a ‘certain’ company that young people in our Country very much wanted to save. They will be very happy! I will be speaking to President Xi on Friday.”
Bessent says that the proposed deal will maintain the “Chinese characteristics” of the app, while also facilitating a sale in compliance with the “Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act.” Bessent has also noted that the deadline for the finalized sale may be extended by another 90 days to enable both sides to clarify the specifics, though right now, the plan is to get a deal established ahead of this week’s deadline.
President Trump has extended the deadline for TikTok’s compliance with the law three times, using Executive Orders to hold off enforcement of the Senate-approved bill. The current deadline, as noted, is up on September 17th, but Trump seems confident that they can avoid having to withhold enforcement once again, though that doesn’t leave a heap of time to work out the particulars.
Interestingly, reports have also indicated that the Chinese government won’t sell TikTok’s algorithmic core to the U.S. under any circumstances, while U.S. officials have also stated that they won’t negotiate unless the CCP backs off demands to ease tariffs and tech restrictions.
Given the complexity, a sell-off deal may not quite be over the line as yet, and it’s also worth noting that the White House has reported several times that it’s been close to a deal, with the final discussions falling through at the last-minute.
So we shouldn’t be getting too far ahead of ourselves just yet, but all the indications, after this most recent meeting, are that a TikTok deal is imminent.
Which would end the years-long TikTok-U.S. uncertainty, and ensure that TikTok creators can finally relax, knowing that they won’t lose their audience in the app. It would also enable TikTok itself to resume its in-stream shopping push in the U.S., and work on building its plans for expanded monetization in the region.
Again, I wouldn’t be celebrating right away, but the indicators are that a TikTok-U.S. deal will be announced this week.
