The Grand Divorce: TikTok Signs Landmark Deal to Hand U.S. Control to Oracle-Led Group

The Grand Divorce moves closer to completion as TikTok’s U.S. operations plan advances, with a new entity named TikTok US Data Security Joint Venture LLC taking responsibility for safeguarding U.S. data, algorithmic security, content moderation and software integrity.

Under the proposed structure, 45% of the venture will be held by U.S.-based consortiums and companies, 30% by affiliated entities of ByteDance’s existing investors, and ByteDance itself will retain 20%, resulting in effective control resting primarily with U.S. investors. Beyond data security, ByteDance will continue to run other TikTok U.S. operations, including commercial activities such as e-commerce, advertising and marketing, while separate TikTok entities in the United States maintain global interoperability.

The agreement for the sale of TikTok’s U.S. operations is expected to be finalised no later than 22 January 2026, according to CNBC, bringing the protracted divestment saga to a close. While ByteDance will incur some losses, the outcome is viewed as considerably more favourable than earlier proposals.