CNBC reports enterprise software company Oracle is in talks to acquire the U.S. portion of Chinese company ByteDance’s TikTok operations.
ByteDance is looking to sell off its U.S. TikTok operations before President Donald Trump’s threatened shutdown of the app goes into effect.
Oracle is joining with a group of U.S. venture capital firms that currently own a stake in TikTok, the report said. A report from the Financial Times claims General Atlantic and Sequoia Capital are on board with the plan that would see an acquisition of TikTok’s U.S., Canadian, Australian, and New Zealand businesses.
Earlier this month it was reported that the leading suitor for TikTok was Microsoft, with a potential bid of up to $30 billion. CNBC says Microsoft and Oracle’s group are “far ahead” of any other groups interested in the popular but embattled social media app.
While TikTok is considered to be a somewhat unusual target for enterprise solutions-focused Oracle, the app could provide valuable customer data for Oracle’s marketing offerings.
President Trump on Friday signed an executive order giving China-based ByteDance 90 days to sell its TikTok business in the United States, citing evidence of possible national security threats.
In the order, the Trump administration claimed there is “credible evidence” to suggest ByteDance “might take action that threatens to impair the national security of the United States.”
