US President Donald Trump has stated that the deal to purchase TikTok’s US business, currently owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, is “still on the table.” This statement comes after Fox News reported that the administration was no longer pursuing the deal.
According to Fox journalist Charles Gasparino, “White House officials have now acknowledged that the TikTok US deal — selling a Chinese company to a US company — is no longer on the table in the near future, and maybe never, because we’re heading toward a trade war that’s entirely focused on China.” Gasparino shared this comment both on his social media platform X and during his television appearance.
Despite this, Trump clarified during a conversation with reporters in the Oval Office that the deal had not been abandoned. “We have a deal with some very good people, some very wealthy companies, that would do a great job of doing this, but we’ll have to wait and see what happens with China. It’s still on the table, that’s important,” he said.
Deadline Extension and Legal Challenges
Last week, Trump extended the deadline for ByteDance to divest its US operations or risk having TikTok banned in the country. Around 170 million Americans currently use the app. The revised deadline for concluding the deal is now June 19. Under the proposed terms, TikTok’s US business would be spun off into a new, US-based entity managed by American investors.
However, this extension has raised legal questions. Democratic Senators Mark Warner and Ed Markey claim the president does not have the legal authority to prolong the review process for the ByteDance deal. Warner also expressed doubts about the deal’s compliance with existing laws.
Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Tom Cotton added that many US investors are interested in acquiring TikTok, but emphasized that any successful bidder would need to sever all ties with China.
Potential Buyers and Ongoing Interest
Several high-profile companies and individuals have been named among the potential buyers of TikTok’s US operations, reminds NIX Solutions. These include Blackstone, Microsoft, Oracle, and Elon Musk, who owns the social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter).
Although there is no certainty regarding the final outcome, interest remains strong. We’ll keep you updated as more information becomes available.