Beijing pledges dialogue with U.S. on TikTok ownership resolution
China’s Commerce Ministry said it would work with Washington to resolve the fate of TikTok’s U.S. business, stopping short of endorsing a White House-backed plan to spin the app into a new company majority-owned by American investors.
The statement, issued Thursday (October 30, 2025), came alongside broader U.S.–China talks and didn’t spell out equity, board, or technology arrangements. It marked the clearest public sign this month that Beijing is prepared to keep working toward a settlement that preserves the app’s U.S. operations without detailing what control ByteDance would retain.
Officials in Washington have laid out a national-security framework that includes U.S.-controlled governance and strict data safeguards. China’s comment acknowledged the process but avoided confirming any timeline or the precise mix of American investors likely to anchor a restructured company.
Officials in Washington have laid out a national-security framework that includes U.S.-controlled governance and strict data safeguards. China’s comment acknowledged the process but avoided confirming any timeline or the precise mix of American investors likely to anchor a restructured company.
A deal would remove a persistent friction point in U.S.–China relations and let TikTok continue operating at scale in its largest advertising market. It would also reduce ByteDance’s direct control over the platform’s American arm and cap it at 20%, a trade-off Beijing has been reluctant to accept without clear guardrails on technology transfer and export restrictions.
The politics around the case remain intense. U.S. officials have framed the restructuring as a security requirement rather than an industrial policy decision. Chinese agencies, for their part, have linked cooperation to broader de-escalation on investment and tech curbs, suggesting any TikTok outcome will sit within a larger package of understandings.
Market focus now is on mechanics. Investors are watching for a definitive term sheet covering board composition, source-code custody, audit rights, and an implementation schedule. Advertisers want assurance that campaign tools and creator payouts won’t be disrupted during the transition. And both governments will need a dispute process that survives future political shifts.
As the divestment talks grind on, one rumor keeps looping back: that Barron Trump, 19, could be tapped for a board seat at a U.S. TikTok entity to juice Gen-Z engagement. There’s no filing or on-record confirmation, but the chatter has been persistent since mid-October; GNcrypto flagged the speculation on Oct. 13 and noted that even its boosters conceded it was still only a floated idea, not a signed role.
The politics around the case remain intense. U.S. officials have framed the restructuring as a security requirement rather than an industrial policy decision. Chinese agencies, for their part, have linked cooperation to broader de-escalation on investment and tech curbs, suggesting any TikTok outcome will sit within a larger package of understandings.
Market focus now is on mechanics. Investors are watching for a definitive term sheet covering board composition, source-code custody, audit rights, and an implementation schedule. Advertisers want assurance that campaign tools and creator payouts won’t be disrupted during the transition. And both governments will need a dispute process that survives future political shifts.
As the divestment talks grind on, one rumor keeps looping back: that Barron Trump, 19, could be tapped for a board seat at a U.S. TikTok entity to juice Gen-Z engagement. There’s no filing or on-record confirmation, but the chatter has been persistent since mid-October; GNcrypto flagged the speculation on Oct. 13 and noted that even its boosters conceded it was still only a floated idea, not a signed role.
Author
Sebile Fane cut her teeth in blockchain by building tiny NFT experiments with friends in her living room, long before the buzzwords took hold. She’s driven by a curiosity for the human stories behind smart contracts — whether it’s a small-town artist minting her first token or a DAO voting on climate grants — and weaves technical insight with genuine empathy.
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