TikTok’s leadership is discussing the possibility of separating from ByteDance Ltd., its Chinese parent company, to help address U.S. concerns about national security risks.
A divestiture, which could result in a sale or initial public offering, is considered a last resort, to be pursued only if the company’s existing proposal with national security officials doesn’t get approved, according to people familiar with the matter. Even then, the Chinese government would have to agree to such a transaction, the people said.
TikTok, which is undergoing a national security review by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, agreed last year to implement a number of measures to address U.S. officials’ security concerns. That plan, which it calls Project Texas, includes bringing in American tech giant Oracle Corp. to host U.S. user data and review its software, and appointing a three-person government-approved oversight board.