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ByteDance to retain single board seat out of 7 in TikTok’s US operations
Trump administration reportedly outlined framework giving Americans majority control of TikTok’s U.S. board, with data stored domestically under Oracle.
U.S. and China edge closer to TikTok deal as ByteDance set to retain minority stake.
A tentative U.S.-China arrangement over TikTok’s American operations would allow ByteDance, the Chinese parent company, to nominate one of seven directors to a newly formed U.S. board, while Americans would hold the remaining six seats, a senior White House official said, as per a Reuters report.
The deal is central to President Donald Trump’s efforts to prevent TikTok’s ban in the United States. Congress passed legislation in 2024 requiring the platform to be shut down by January 2025 unless its U.S. assets were divested from ByteDance. Trump has pushed back enforcement of the law until mid-December as negotiations continue to carve out TikTok’s U.S. arm, attract domestic investors, and meet the legal definition of a divestiture.
Trump, who credited TikTok with aiding his 2024 re-election and boasts 15 million followers on the app, said he made progress on the issue during a recent call with Chinese President Xi Jinping and plans to meet him in person in six weeks.
The report further shared that Trump intends to grant another 120-day extension, shifting the deadline for a final deal to April. Under the proposed terms, TikTok’s U.S. entity would be majority-owned by American investors, overseen by a board with national security and cybersecurity expertise, and required to store all U.S. user data on Oracle’s cloud infrastructure.
ByteDance’s current investors include Susquehanna International Group, General Atlantic, and KKR. Under the proposed structure, ByteDance would retain less than a 20% stake in the new U.S. venture.
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