After years of intense regulatory scrutiny and the looming threat of a complete shutdown, TikTok has successfully navigated the choppy waters of US–China tensions. Its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, has signed binding agreements with a consortium of US and global investors, effectively securing the platform’s future in the United States and averting a long-feared TikTok ban in the US.
This landmark TikTok deal, set to close on January 22, represents a major turning point for the social media platform, which boasts more than 170 million American users and plays a central role in digital advertising, creator monetization, and small business marketing across the country.
At the core of the complex ByteDance agreement is the formation of a new TikTok joint venture, with 50% ownership held by a powerful group of American and international investors. Key stakeholders include cloud technology giant Oracle, private equity firm Silver Lake, and Abu Dhabi–based investment firm MGX.
According to an internal memo from Shou Zi Chew, CEO of TikTok, Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX will each hold a 15% stake in the business. Chinese parent company ByteDance, while relinquishing majority control, will retain a 19.9% ownership stake, with affiliates of its existing investors holding an additional 30.1%. This carefully structured TikTok ownership framework is specifically designed to address long-standing US national security concerns, data privacy risks, and government oversight demands that have surrounded the platform for years amid ongoing US–China geopolitical tensions.
This resolution has been years in the making, shaped by escalating US–China tensions and persistent concerns over TikTok data security. The controversy began during the administration of Donald Trump, which moved to force ByteDance to sell TikTok’s US operations, citing fears that American user data could be accessed or influenced by the Chinese government. An initial TikTok divestment deal announced in September helped prevent an immediate TikTok ban in the US, but uncertainty, legal challenges, and regulatory delays continued to cloud the platform’s future.
The pressure did not ease under Joe Biden’s administration. In April 2024, the US Congress passed legislation mandating a TikTok sale or nationwide ban, with the law initially scheduled to take effect on January 20, 2025. The move intensified debates around national security, foreign ownership of social media platforms, and data privacy risks for American users, keeping TikTok at the center of US tech policy discussions.
A critical component of the final agreement involves Oracle, co-founded by Trump ally Larry Ellison. The White House has previously indicated that Oracle will license and oversee TikTok’s recommendation algorithm, a move seen as central to addressing long-standing US national security concerns. Under the agreement, the algorithm will be retrained exclusively on US user data, ensuring content feeds are insulated from foreign influence or external manipulation.
This Oracle investment in TikTok is intended to place the platform’s most powerful technology — its algorithm — into what regulators hope are safer, US-controlled hands. While critics remain skeptical about enforcement and oversight, supporters argue the arrangement represents a major step toward securing data sovereignty, strengthening government oversight, and safeguarding the future of TikTok in the American digital economy.
For many, especially the vibrant community of small business owners, the news comes as a major relief. Tiffany Cianci, a small business owner with a significant TikTok following, expressed hope that the new TikTok investors would preserve the platform’s user experience for entrepreneurs and creators. TikTok has stated that more than seven million small businesses in the United States rely on the platform for digital marketing, brand growth, and customer engagement.
Cianci, who actively protested the potential TikTok ban in the US, emphasized the platform’s favorable profit-sharing and monetization features compared to competing social media platforms. While she remains cautious about whether the app has truly been “saved” for small businesses, the TikTok deal provides a sense of stability and continuity for millions who depend on the platform for their livelihoods.
This TikTok deal goes beyond corporate restructuring or ownership changes, it plays a crucial role in protecting a key digital ecosystem for creativity, influencer marketing, small business commerce, and online entrepreneurship in the United States.
