About 170 million Americans are on the very popular app. Some Americans want to buy it, and a new law requires TikTok to sell or be banned in the United States. TikTok said they won’t sell or give in to thievery.
“ByteDance doesn’t have any plans to sell TikTok,” the company posted on its official account on Toutiao, a social media platform it owns.
“Foreign media reports of ByteDance selling TikTok are not true,” the company said in the post, which included a screenshot of the article with the Chinese characters meaning “false rumour” stamped on it.
Biden signed the measure on Wednesday.
TIKTOK CLAIMS THE CONSTITUTION IS ON ITS SIDE
“We are confident, and we will keep fighting for your rights in the courts,” said TikTok boss Shou Zi Chew.
“The facts and the Constitution are on our side. Rest assured, we aren’t going anywhere.”
They could well be right.
According to TikTok, ByteDance’s Chinese founder owns 20% of shares through a controlling stake in the company.
About 60% is owned by institutional investors, including major US investment firms Carlyle Group, General Atlantic, and Susquehanna International Group.
The remaining 20% is owned by its employees around the world, and three of ByteDance’s five board members are Americans.
They have nine months to sell.
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