Priyanka Tiwari
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Suspense crime, Digital Desk : In a surprising reversal, former President Donald Trump has thrown his weight behind a potential U.S. acquisition of TikTok, claiming a group of "very wealthy people" is ready to make a bid for the popular social media app. This move marks a significant shift from his previous efforts to ban the platform entirely.
The potential deal, reportedly led by Trump's former Treasury Secretary, Steven Mnuchin, emerges as the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill that could force TikTok's Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to either sell the app or face a nationwide ban.
"I'm working with a group of people that want to buy it," Trump stated, confirming that Mnuchin is a key part of the investor consortium. "I think it's a great group, they're very wealthy, and they'd do a good job."
This new stance is a stark contrast to Trump's position while in office, when he signed executive orders to ban TikTok over national security concerns. His reasoning for the change of heart appears to be strategic. Trump now argues that banning TikTok would primarily benefit its competitor, Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram. He recently referred to Facebook as an "enemy of the people" and expressed concern that its influence would grow without TikTok as a rival.
However, any potential sale faces significant hurdles. Beyond securing the necessary capital for a deal valued in the tens of billions, the buyers would need approval from two world powers. In the U.S., the deal would have to satisfy the national security concerns that prompted the divest-or-ban bill in the first place.
More critically, the transaction would require a green light from Beijing. The Chinese government has previously opposed a forced sale of TikTok and implemented export controls over its technology, specifically targeting the app's powerful recommendation algorithm. Trump acknowledged this challenge but expressed optimism, stating he believes China would approve such a sale.
As the clock ticks on the potential U.S. ban, the future of TikTok's 170 million American users hangs in the balance. This potential buyout, championed by an unlikely new ally, presents one possible path forward, but it is a route filled with immense political and financial complexities.
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