TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, has signed a deal with US and international investors to keep the app operating in the United States.
TikTok chief executive Shou Zi Chew told employees that the agreement will transfer control of TikTok’s US business to a new joint venture. The move is meant to address long-standing US government concerns about national security.
Under the deal, ByteDance will keep a 19.9% stake in the company. US firms Oracle and Silver Lake, alongside Abu Dhabi-based investment firm MGX, will each own 15%, while other existing investors will hold the remaining shares.
The agreement is expected to be finalised on January 22. It follows years of pressure from Washington, which had threatened to ban TikTok unless its US operations were sold.
TikTok said the deal would allow more than 170 million Americans to continue using the app. The company also confirmed that its recommendation algorithm would be licensed to Oracle and retrained using data from US users.
The deal aligns with an earlier announcement made in September, after President Donald Trump delayed the enforcement of a law that would have banned the app.
Despite the agreement, some US lawmakers have raised concerns, arguing that the deal may not fully protect the privacy of American users. TikTok, however, insists the new structure will strengthen data security and ensure the platform’s future in the US.
