President Donald Trump is preparing to take a critical step toward reshaping TikTok’s U.S. operations. According to a White House official, he will sign an executive order on today (September 25, 2025) that formally recognizes the proposed sale of TikTok’s U.S. assets to a consortium dominated by American investors.
A Procedural Win, Not a Done Deal
While the executive order is being framed as a breakthrough, officials stress that the transaction is far from complete. Both Washington and Beijing have signaled agreement on the deal’s broad framework, but final approval from regulators in both countries will be needed before any transfer of ownership can occur. As of Monday, even the full roster of participating investors remained unsettled, a senior White House official confirmed.
Thursday’s order will declare that the proposed transaction meets the criteria of a “qualified divestiture” under the U.S. ban-or-sale law enacted with bipartisan support last year. That law, in effect since January, prohibits TikTok from operating in the United States unless its parent company ByteDance divests roughly 80% of its American assets to non-Chinese investors. Enforcement of that mandate has repeatedly been delayed by the president.
Extended Timeline for Compliance
To give the parties time to finalize the paperwork and secure regulatory sign-offs, Trump is expected to grant another 120-day pause in enforcement. He had already extended the deadline to December 16, meaning TikTok’s U.S. assets likely won’t change hands until sometime next year if the deal closes.
ByteDance, for its part, is preparing to sign an agreement this week outlining the transaction’s framework with one or more incoming investors, a senior White House official said Monday.
What the New Ownership Structure Could Look Like
Under the plan, control of TikTok’s U.S. operations — including a copy of its powerful algorithm — would be handed to a new, U.S.-based joint venture. The group would feature majority American investors and a board dominated by U.S. directors. ByteDance would retain no more than a 20% stake. Potential players include private-equity giant Silver Lake and Lachlan Murdoch’s Fox Corp., according to officials familiar with the negotiations.
Oracle is expected to oversee the app’s algorithm as well as data and privacy protections, a role intended to address longstanding security concerns about Chinese access to U.S. user information.
Questions That Still Need Answers
Even with a framework in place, several key issues remain unresolved. It’s unclear whether American users would need to download a new version of TikTok once ownership changes hands. And while the deal would preserve access for TikTok’s 170 million U.S. users, some critics have already raised concerns about the platform’s algorithm being controlled by a group of mostly American investors that reportedly includes allies of Trump.
A Diplomatic Subtext
This high-stakes transaction also carries geopolitical weight. The expected deal sets the stage for the first in-person meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping since Trump returned to office. The two leaders discussed TikTok during a phone call on Friday and are slated to meet at the APEC Summit in South Korea next month.
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