U.S. Tells ByteDance To Divest In TikTok

The US government has told ByteDance to sell its stake in TikTok after more than two years of negotiations failed to convince Washington that the popular short-video app is not a national security risk, Nikkei Asia reported.

Photo Insert: TikTok’s leadership has been discussing the possibility of separating from ByteDance to address concerns about national security risks.

Analysts said TikTok could be valued at $40 billion to $50 billion based on social media multiples and other factors, Chris Strohm, Annmarie Hordern and Anna Edgerton reported for Bloomberg.

The Treasury Department is leading the discussion through the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US (CFIUS), and made the demand recently to Tiktok’s Chinese owner, ByteDance Ltd.

TikTok’s leadership has been discussing the possibility of separating from ByteDance to address concerns about national security risks, LA Times also reported.

“If protecting national security is the objective, divestment doesn’t solve the problem: a change in ownership would not impose any new restrictions on data flows or access,” TikTok spokeswoman Maureen Shanahan howled.

“The best way to address concerns about national security is with the transparent, US-based protection of US user data and systems, with robust third-party monitoring, vetting and verification, which we are already implementing.”

TikTok agreed to changes under Project Texas, which calls for Oracle Corp. to host US user data and review its software and appointing a three-person government-approved oversight board. But Washington wasn’t convinced and wanted the Chinese out.

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