United States President, Donald Trump, revealed during a televised interview on Sunday that a potential buyer for TikTok has been found, with an official announcement expected in roughly two weeks.
“We have a buyer for TikTok, by the way,” Trump stated on Fox News’ Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo. “I think I’ll need probably China’s approval, and I believe President Xi will likely go along with it.”
Pressed for the identity of the buyer, Trump responded, “I’ll tell you in about two weeks,” only adding that the interested party consists of “a group of very wealthy people.”
This revelation comes five months after legislation was enacted requiring TikTok’s U.S. operations to be sold off or face a nationwide ban, due to its ties to Chinese parent company ByteDance.
However, enforcement of the law has stalled under Trump’s administration. Aside from a brief 14-hour blackout in January, TikTok has continued operating in the U.S., largely due to Trump issuing a series of executive orders postponing the law’s implementation.
Most recently, as a June 19 enforcement deadline loomed, Trump granted TikTok an additional 90-day reprieve, pushing the deadline for ByteDance to relinquish control of its U.S. arm to September 17.
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The continuous delays have fueled uncertainty over TikTok’s future in America and cast doubt on the potential approval of any deal by Beijing.
China has been largely silent on the matter, but has strongly suggested that the company’s prized algorithm, often dubbed TikTok’s “secret sauce”, would not be included in any sale.
A deal was reportedly close to completion in April, one that would have shifted majority ownership of TikTok’s U.S. operations to American investors.
However, progress was derailed when Trump imposed new tariffs on Chinese goods, prompting yet another 75-day extension.
ByteDance confirmed that unresolved issues remain. “Any agreement will be subject to approval under Chinese law,” the company said after the latest setback.
The sale-or-ban legislation had originally been signed into law by President Joe Biden, with an effective date of January 19. In response, TikTok briefly shut down access to the platform, drawing widespread backlash from users and content creators.
It quickly resumed operations once Trump issued his initial delay order, aiming to keep negotiations for a possible sale alive.
