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China Presses Legal Compliance as TikTok’s U.S. Spinoff Moves Toward Closing

Beijing’s call for compliance with its laws highlights unresolved approval and algorithm-control questions before the planned January 22 closing.

Overview

  • ByteDance signed binding agreements to place the U.S. app under TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC, targeting a January 22, 2026 closing to avert a ban and preserve service for about 170 million U.S. users.
  • The new entity’s ownership is set at 50% for an Oracle–Silver Lake–MGX consortium, 30.1% for affiliates of existing ByteDance investors, and 19.9% retained by ByteDance.
  • The joint venture will oversee U.S. data protection, algorithm security, content moderation, and software assurance.
  • China’s commerce ministry urged Washington to work with Beijing and said any solution must comply with Chinese laws and balance the interests of all parties.
  • The transaction advances compliance with a 2024 U.S. divest-or-ban law whose enforcement deadline has been extended by President Trump to January 23, 2026.