Washington, October 30, (Market Insider) – China has officially approved the long-awaited deal to transfer TikTok’s U.S. operations to an American-led consortium, marking a major breakthrough in one of the most closely watched technology and geopolitical negotiations of recent years.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed the development on October 30, saying that China had given its green light to the TikTok transaction during high-level meetings in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. “We’ve finalized the TikTok agreement and received China’s approval,” Bessent told Fox Business Network following a meeting between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. “I expect this process to move forward in the coming weeks and months, and ultimately bring a resolution to this issue.”
The Chinese Ministry of Commerce also released a statement the same day, saying Beijing would handle matters related to TikTok “appropriately” in coordination with the U.S.
TikTok, owned by Beijing-based ByteDance, has yet to comment on the development.
The fate of the wildly popular video-sharing app — with over 170 million American users — has hung in limbo for more than 18 months, ever since the U.S. Congress passed a 2024 law requiring ByteDance to divest its U.S. assets by January 2025 over national security concerns. President Trump had repeatedly delayed enforcement of that law to allow room for negotiation.
In late September, Trump signed an executive order endorsing a sale plan that met Washington’s security demands. The order granted a 120-day window for the deal to be completed. Under the terms, TikTok’s algorithm — the core of its viral success — will be retrained and monitored by U.S.-approved security partners, with operational control resting entirely in the hands of the new American-led entity.
According to sources familiar with the structure, ByteDance will appoint just one of seven board members at the restructured TikTok U.S., while six will be Americans. The Chinese company’s stake will be capped below 20% to comply with the 2024 law.
The new TikTok U.S. venture is expected to be valued at around $14 billion, U.S. Vice President JD Vance revealed, noting that the agreement “strikes the right balance between protecting national security and preserving innovation.”
The approval marks a rare moment of alignment between Washington and Beijing amid heightened tensions over trade, technology, and data security — and could signal a new chapter for one of the world’s most influential social media platforms.
