President Donald Trump on Sunday said his administration is in talks with four different groups who are interested in acquiring TikTok from its Chinese parent company ByteDance, days after signaling that he may extend the 75-day deadline for the company to complete the deal.
US President Donald Trump gives a thumb's up after stepping off Air Force One at Palm Beach ... [+]
Speaking to reporters onboard Air Force One, Trump said “there could be” a deal for TikTok’s sale soon and his administration was “dealing with four different groups” on the matter.
The president said “a lot of people” want to buy TikTok and the final decision was up to him.
Trump did not provide any details about the four groups that have shown interest or if he preferred any particular bidder, but noted that “all four are good.”
Forbes has reached out to TikTok for comment.
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After taking office on Jan. 20, the president paused a ban on TikTok from going into effect and gave the company a 75-day extension to find a buyer for its U.S. operations. That extension is set to expire on April 5. Last week, Trump told reporters he would “probably” be willing to extend the 75-day deadline, and said, “we have a lot of interest in TikTok…so hopefully China will approve of the deal.” Trump did not specify how long he is willing to extend the deadline, but legally he is only allowed to extend it for 90 days—only on the condition that ByteDance is actively working to divest TikTok.
Shortly after he signed an executive to halt the TikTok ban on his inauguration day, Trump said China’s approval of the deal could influence his decision to impose tariffs on the country. Speaking to reporters inside the Oval Office, Trump said he expects China to approve any deal the U.S. would want to make with TikTok, “because we’d put tariffs on China…I’m not saying we would, but we certainly could do that.” Trump then warned if China blocked the deal, “then that’s a certain hostility and we’ll put tariffs of 25, 30, 50%, even 100%.” Despite linking the tariffs with the TikTok deal initially, Trump has since enacted a sweeping 20% levy on imports from China—which has resulted in retaliatory tariffs from Beijing.
Trump Says He’ll ‘Probably’ Extend TikTok’s Sale Deadline—Halting Next Month’s Ban (Forbes)
Trump Warns Fate Of TikTok Deal Could Impact China Tariffs—Beijing Signals It May Not Block Sale (Forbes)