TikTok in Whose Arms? ... Trump Says "Both Musk and Ellison Are Open"

75-Day Suspension of TikTok Ban
Trump: Business License Possible if Half of TikTok Shares Go to the U.S.
Prospective Buyers Continue to Enter the Race

Larry Ellison, chairman of the American software company Oracle, has also joined the bidding war to acquire the Chinese video platform TikTok.

On the 21st (local time), according to Bloomberg and CNN, President Trump said at a press conference held at the White House, when asked if he was open to "Elon (Musk) acquiring TikTok," "If he wants to buy (TikTok), yes," and then pointed to Ellison, who attended the conference that day, saying, "I also hope Larry buys it (TikTok)." Oracle is already doing business with TikTok. TikTok uses Oracle's servers. It is also known that Oracle helped restore TikTok's service after it was temporarily shut down.

TikTok's Chinese parent company ByteDance did not sell TikTok's business rights by the 19th, the deadline set by the U.S. TikTok ban law, causing TikTok's service in the U.S. to be temporarily suspended. However, the service was restored after President Trump issued an order to delay the TikTok ban for 75 days shortly after taking office.

ByteDance had previously stated that it had no intention of selling TikTok, but Bloomberg reported that as the suspension of TikTok's U.S. service became a reality this time, expectations grew among potential buyers that ByteDance might change its mind.

Regarding the TikTok sale plan, President Trump said, "We are thinking about saying that if someone buys TikTok and gives half of the shares to the U.S., we will grant them a business license."

He meant that if TikTok's U.S. service is suspended, the company TikTok has no value, but if it can operate in the U.S., it has tremendous value, so half of the shares must be given to the U.S.

The bidding war for TikTok in the U.S. is heating up. Potential buyers are consecutively throwing their hats into the ring. An American investment group recruited by entrepreneur Jesse Tinsley has also expressed interest in acquiring TikTok, reportedly including YouTuber MrBeast, who has about 200 million subscribers worldwide.

American real estate tycoon Frank McCourt and Canadian-born billionaire and broadcaster Kevin O'Leary are also pursuing public acquisitions. There are reports that AI startup Perplexity has also made an acquisition proposal to TikTok US.

In an interview with Bloomberg, O'Leary expressed strong acquisition intentions, saying, "We have no conflicts in any way, and we have cash." Unlike Musk, who already owns X and may raise monopoly concerns, O'Leary claims there is no reason to delay the deal or hinder the merger.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.