With the TikTok sale deadline fast approaching, President Donald Trump says a deal will be struck before Saturday, April 5.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday, Trump said there is “tremendous interest in TikTok” and he would “like to see TikTok remain alive.”
Reuters reports that private equity firm Blackstone is weighing up buying a minority stake in TikTok’s US arm. Blackstone is reportedly looking at teaming up with ByteDance’s existing non-Chinese shareholders — which include Susquehanna International Group and General Atlantic — to take over TikTok’s US operations. Reuters reports that the group are front-runners in the deal.
The runners and riders in the shadowy chase to buy US TikTok has included Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, Trump’s “First Buddy” Elon Musk, and Microsoft were also reportedly in talks.
Last month, Trump said that he will “probably” extend the deadline for the sale of TikTok.
“We’re dealing with China who also want it because they may have something to do with it,” Trump said on Sunday while also suggesting that “maybe I’ll give them a little reduction in tariffs or something to get it done.”
Vice President JD Vance says he believes that the terms of the TikTok sale will be agreed before the Saturday deadline.
Almost half of all Americans are on TikTok, many of them rely on it for income, networking, and entertainment. However, Washington believes that since its owner ByteDance is a Chinese company, that makes it beholden to the Chinese government.
The US Supreme Court cited national security concerns in its decision to uphold the ban which was passed with bipartisan support.
“Congress has determined that divestiture is necessary to address its well-supported national security concerns regarding TikTok’s data collection practices and relationship with a foreign adversary,” the court wrote.
On January 19, TikTok temporarily went dark for millions of Americans only for it to come back online in a matter of hours after President Trump provided assurances.
It was, however, unavailable on the App Store and Google Play Store for a number of weeks before it was eventually reinstated.
Image credits: Header photo licensed via Depositphotos.
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