The US is just days away from imposing a ban on TikTok unless a deal is reached with parent company ByteDance to find a US-based owner for the hugely popular app.
Saturday’s deadline will impact roughly 170 million TikTok users in the US, however President Donald Trump has claimed that a deal will be made in time.
Trump extended the deadline from January to 5 April after coming into office, giving ByteDance more time to find a non-Chinese buyer.
“We have a lot of potential buyers,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One late on Sunday. “There’s tremendous interest in Tiktok… I’d like to see Tiktok remain alive.”
TikTok did not immediately comment.
Private equity firm Blackstone is reportedly evaluating making a small minority investment in TikTok’s US operations, according to two people familiar with the matter.
Blackstone is discussing joining ByteDance’s existing non-Chinese shareholders, led by Susquehanna International Group and General Atlantic, in contributing fresh capital to bid for TikTok’s US business. The group has emerged as front-runners.
Washington says TikTok’s ownership by ByteDance makes it beholden to the Chinese government and Beijing could use the app to conduct influence operations against the United States and collect data on Americans.
Trump previously said he was willing to extend the April deadline if an agreement over the social media app was not reached.
Last week, he acknowledged the role China will play in getting any deal done, including giving its approval, saying “maybe I’ll give them a little reduction in tariffs or something to get it done.”
Vice President JD Vance has said he expects the general terms of an agreement resolving the ownership of the social media platform to be reached by 5 April.
The future of the app used by nearly half of all Americans has been up in the air since a 2024 law, passed with overwhelming bipartisan support, required ByteDance to divest TikTok by 19 January.
The White House has been involved to an unprecedented level in the closely watched deal talks, effectively playing the role of investment bank.
TikTok is already banned in several other markets, including India where roughly 200 million users were cut off due to national security fears.
The US ban would not remove the app from users’ devices if it is already installed, however it will prevent new users from downloading it.
TikTok has previously said that it plans to shut down its US service entirely if the ban goes into force.
Additional reporting from agencies.
