ByteDance and U.S. investors form TikTok ownership venture
Mark Moran
Thu, December 18, 2025 at 8:20 PM EST
2 min read
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Dec. 18 (UPI) -- The owner of TikTok has signed an agreement to create a joint venture that will make the popular social media app majority-owned by American investors, the company announced Thursday.
The Trump administration had mandated that ByteDance, TikTok's owner, become primarily owned by a consortium of U.S. companies to continue operating in the United States.
The news was announced to company employees by TikTok Chief Executive Officer Shou Chew, according to NBC News.
The tech company Oracle, private equity-based fund Silver Lake and MGX, a United Arab Emirates investment firm are among the biggest investors.
Oracle shares jumped 5% in after-hours trading.
Nearly a third of the venture will be owned by affiliates of existing ByteDance investors, with another 20% retained by ByteDance, Axios reported.
Chew said as part of the deal, TikTok will be overseen by a new seven-member major board of directors.
"The U.S. joint venture will be responsible for U.S. data protection, algorithm security, content moderation and software assurance," Chew said in the memo. "It will also have the exclusive right and authority to provide assurances that content, software and data for American users is secure."
In September, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Premier He Lifeng came together on a "framework" that would clear the way for American investors to take control of the app in the United States.
Last year, members of Congress expressed concern about China's access to U.S. user data and privacy, especially among an app that is wildly popular with American youth.
They claimed that through the app, TikTok posed a national security threat to the United States by the Chinese government.
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