ByteDance seeks $60 billion TikTok valuation as Trump approves Oracle & Walmart deal with TikTok

Chinese ByteDance is seeking a $60 billion valuation for TikTok as it has agreed to Oracle and Walmart acquisition of 12.5% and 7.5% stakes respectively in the new company called TikTok Global.

TikTok Global will be responsible for providing all TikTok services to users in United States and most of the users in the rest of the world.

TikTok Global will be majority owned by American investors, including Oracle and Walmart. It will be an independent American company, headquartered in the U.S., with four Americans out of the five member Board of Directors.

All the TikTok technology will be in possession of TikTok Global, and comply with U.S. laws and privacy regulations.

Oracle will become TikTok’s secure cloud provider providing data privacy for over 100 million American TikTok users while Walmart will bring its omni-channel retail capabilities including its Walmart.com assortment, eCommerce marketplace, fulfillment, payment and measurement-as-a-service advertising service

Just hours to the deadline given to ByteDance to either sell its TikTok operations or have new downloads and updates to the app blocked, the company announced a partnership deal with Oracle and Walmart. It had rejected Microsoft’s acquisition deal some days ago.

According to Bloomberg, Oracle and Walmart would pay a combined $12 billion for their stakes if they agree to the $60 billion asking price. ByteDance will own 80% of TikTok Global.

On Saturday, U.S. President Donald Trump said that he supported a deal in principle would allow TikTok to continue to operate in the United States, even as it appeared to conflict with his earlier executive order for China’s ByteDance to divest the video app.

“I have given the deal my blessing, if they get it done, that’s okay too, if they don’t, that’s fine too,” Trump told reporters at the White House.

He said the deal will create 25,000 jobs, and that the new US version of TikTok “will have nothing to do with China.” He said Oracle and Walmart will set up a $5 billion fund to educate young Americans.

TikTok has officially confirmed the partnership with Oracle and Walmart saying,

“We’re pleased that today we’ve confirmed a proposal that resolves the Administration’s security concerns and settles questions around TikTok’s future in the US. Our plan is extensive and consistent with previous CFIUS resolutions, including working with Oracle, who will be our trusted cloud and technology provider responsible for fully securing our users’ data. We are committed to protecting our users globally and providing the highest levels of security. Both Oracle and Walmart will take part in a TikTok Global pre-IPO financing round in which they can take up to a 20% cumulative stake in the company. We will also maintain and expand the US as TikTok Global’s headquarters while bringing 25,000 jobs across the country.”