President Donald Trump announced Sunday that he has identified a group of wealthy buyers for TikTok and plans to reveal their identities within two weeks, marking the latest development in the protracted effort to force the Chinese-owned social media platform to divest its U.S. operations.
Speaking on Fox News Channel's "Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo," Trump said the prospective buyers are "very wealthy people" and expressed confidence that Chinese President Xi Jinping would approve any deal. "We have a buyer for TikTok. I'll need probably China approval and I think President Xi will probably do it," Trump said.
The announcement came as Trump signed an executive order extending ByteDance's deadline to sell TikTok by 90 days, providing additional time for negotiations to unfold1. Trump has previously indicated that multiple investor groups are pursuing the acquisition, with the president stating his administration is "in talks with four different groups" about the potential sale12.
The extension follows a pattern of deadline delays that have characterized the TikTok saga. In April, Trump had already granted a 75-day extension, and in June he provided another extension pushing the deadline to September 1734.
Various high-profile figures and companies have expressed interest in acquiring TikTok's U.S. operations. Potential buyers include former Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt, who is leading "The People's Bid for TikTok" alongside investor Kevin O'Leary12. Amazon has also submitted a bid, while Oracle and a consortium including private equity firm Blackstone have been mentioned as contenders34.
Content creator Jimmy Donaldson, known as MrBeast, has publicly declared his intention to purchase the platform, posting on social media that he was "about to put in my official offer"2.
The push for divestiture stems from U.S. government concerns about TikTok's Chinese ownership through ByteDance. Federal legislation signed in April 2024 mandated that ByteDance sell TikTok's U.S. operations or face a ban due to national security concerns12.
TikTok's U.S. business generates substantial revenue, with more than 110 million monthly active users and over $12 billion in advertising sales in 20241. Analysts estimate any deal would be worth north of $50 billion13.
However, ByteDance has resisted selling, and China's Commerce Ministry has said it will "firmly oppose" forced sales4. Chinese export control laws could also complicate any transaction, potentially preventing the transfer of TikTok's algorithm technology1.
