In a deal that could reshape the social‑media landscape, the United States and China have reached an agreement to transfer ownership of the American version of TikTok. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CBS News that the terms are final and will be sealed when President Donald Trump meets President Xi Jinping in Busan, South Korea on Thursday. It’s the first time the two leaders have sat face‑to‑face since 2019.
Bessent said the agreement was hammered out in Madrid earlier this week. “All the details are ironed out, and this will be the moment the two leaders consummate the transaction in Korea,” he explained. He declined to share more specifics, noting that his role was to get China to agree to the deal, which they did.
Under the deal, ByteDance – TikTok’s Chinese parent company – will keep less than 20 % of the U.S. app, while other investors will hold 80 %. This split satisfies a law passed last year by Congress and signed by former President Joe Biden that required TikTok be divested from direct Chinese influence due to national‑security concerns. If ByteDance had refused, the app would have faced a ban on major U.S. app stores.
President Trump has repeatedly pushed back on the divestment deadline to allow more time for talks. While the deal is now set, it awaits formal approval from Trump and Xi at the upcoming summit. Reports suggest that tech icons such as Larry Ellison, Michael Dell and Rupert Murdoch might be involved as new owners, though details remain unclear.
The agreement also ties into broader U.S.–China trade tensions. Bessent mentioned that Trump plans to drop a recently threatened 155 % tariff on Chinese imports—a hike meant to counter tighter Chinese export controls on rare earths. The current U.S. tariff on most Chinese goods stands at about 55 %. Bessent said the 155 % threat “is off the table” as the two leaders prepare to sign the deal.
In a surprise side note, the Treasury secretary hinted that U.S. soybean farmers would welcome the outcome. Critics had argued that a $20 billion currency swap with Argentina had hurt American farmers by driving cheaper soy to China. Bessent countered that the recent market changes had balanced the supply and that Chinese buyers will continue to purchase U.S. soybeans.
All eyes now turn to Busan, where Trump and Xi is set to finalize the world’s most watched social‑media platform’s ownership shuffle, potentially easing U.S. national‑security worries while opening the door for a new round of Chinese investment in U.S. tech.
Source: New York Post
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