TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, has agreed to sell its US business to a group of American investors, clearing a major hurdle that threatened the platform’s future in the United States.
The deal, confirmed through an internal memo seen by NBC News and Sky News, is expected to officially close on January 22, 2026. Once finalised, it will allow TikTok to continue operating for its more than 170 million US users, ending years of political and regulatory uncertainty.
The sale follows legislation signed last year by President Joe Biden, which required ByteDance to divest TikTok’s US operations or face a nationwide ban. The law was introduced amid concerns from some US lawmakers that user data could be accessed by the Chinese government or that the app’s algorithm could be influenced by Chinese authorities — claims ByteDance has repeatedly denied.
When ByteDance missed the original January 2025 deadline, TikTok briefly went offline in the US. The platform was later restored after President Donald Trump signed an executive order on his first day back in office to keep the service running while negotiations continued.
According to Reuters, ByteDance will sell just over 80% of TikTok’s US assets to a consortium led by Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX, which will form a new entity called TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC. The ownership structure will give US investors a 50% controlling stake, with affiliates of existing ByteDance investors holding 30.1%, and ByteDance retaining 19.9%.
The new company will be governed by a seven-member board with a majority of American directors and will operate under strict safeguards designed to protect US user data and national security. All US user data will be stored domestically.
In a message to employees, TikTok said the agreement ensures Americans can continue to “discover a world of endless possibilities as part of a vital global community,” while complying with US regulatory demands.
