According to The Verge, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew told employees in a memo that the sale of the app’s US business is finalized and will close on January 22nd. The buying consortium includes Oracle, Silver Lake, and Abu Dhabi’s MGX, which together will own 45 percent of the company. Its China-based parent, ByteDance, will retain a 20 percent stake, while the remaining 35 percent will be held by affiliates of existing ByteDance investors. This deal follows a tumultuous year where TikTok faced a U.S. divest-or-ban law, briefly went dark in January, and received a series of extensions from the Trump administration. The U.S. and China agreed on a framework in September, leading to a final extension that expired on December 16th, paving the way for this conclusion.
Stakeholder Whiplash
So, after all that drama, what does this actually mean for the people who use and depend on the platform? For the average user, probably not much in the short term. The app isn’t disappearing, and your For You Page will likely keep scrolling. But here’s the thing: the real impact is on the business and creator ecosystem. A new ownership structure with major U.S. corporate players like Oracle deeply involved could shift TikTok‘s data governance and advertising policies. Developers and brands that have built tools or marketing strategies around TikTok’s API might face new rules or compliance hurdles. It’s a move meant to placate U.S. national security concerns by putting the data and operations under a more American-controlled umbrella. But will it truly change how the algorithm works? That’s the billion-dollar question no one can answer yet.
The New Power Dynamics
Look at the ownership breakdown. ByteDance keeping 20% is huge. It’s not a clean break. They maintain a significant minority stake and, one has to assume, a degree of influence, especially when it comes to the core technology—that famously addictive algorithm. Oracle, now a major shareholder, gets a prized asset for its cloud and data business. Basically, this looks less like a sale and more like a complicated, politically-mandated joint venture. For the market, it removes a massive overhang of uncertainty that was hanging over one of the most important social media properties in the world. Enterprises that had been wary of investing in TikTok ads or integrations due to the ban risk might now feel more secure. But let’s be real, the geopolitical tension between the U.S. and China that caused this saga isn’t going away. This deal is just the current chapter.
