Trump Signs Executive Order Mandating TikTok Sale Worth $14bn

U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order directing the sale of TikTok’s U.S. operations to American and international investors, in line with national security requirements.

According to Reuters, the order mandates that any company bidding for TikTok must meet the security provisions of the 2024 law, which would otherwise ban the app unless its Chinese owners divest.

At a White House briefing, Vice President James Vance said the newly created U.S. entity would be valued at around $14 billion. “We actually think this is a good deal for investors, but they will ultimately decide how much to invest and what value to place on it,” he added.

The White House also extended the enforcement date of the law to January 20 to allow for the sale process, investor commitments, and negotiations with Chinese authorities.

One of the unresolved issues is the handling of TikTok’s key asset — its recommendation algorithm. Trump’s order states that the algorithm will be retrained, monitored by U.S. security partners, and placed under the control of the new joint venture.

Vance said there had been “some resistance on the Chinese side” but emphasized that the goal was to keep TikTok operating while ensuring American users’ data privacy.

Trump noted that he had spoken with Chinese President Xi Jinping about the matter. “We had a good talk, I told him what we were doing, and he said go ahead with it,” Trump said.

Neither the Chinese embassy in Washington nor TikTok immediately commented on the development.

TikTok has 170 million U.S. users, and Trump has credited the platform with helping him secure reelection, pointing to his own following of 15 million. The White House also recently launched an official TikTok account.

“This is going to be American-operated all the way,” Trump said, adding that investors expected to be involved include Dell Technologies founder Michael Dell, media mogul Rupert Murdoch, and “four or five absolutely world-class investors.”