Marketing platform AppLovin said on Thursday it has submitted a bid for TikTok assets outside of China, ahead of the April 5 deadline set by the US President Donald Trump to find a non-Chinese buyer for the short video app used by 170 million Americans.
AppLovin’s indication of interest is preliminary and there can be no assurance that a transaction involving the company will proceed, it said in a regulatory filing.
Bidders for the short video social media company are piling up, as the weekend deadline for TikTok to find a buyer approaches.
Amazon and, separately, a consortium led by OnlyFans founder Tim Stokely are the latest to throw their hats into the ring for TikTok.
US officials have raised security concerns over the app’s ties to China, which TikTok and its owner, ByteDance, have denied.
Trump said last month his administration was in touch with four different groups about the sale of the platform, without identifying them.
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Private equity firm Blackstone is discussing joining ByteDance’s non-Chinese shareholders, led by Susquehanna International Group and General Atlantic, in contributing fresh capital to bid for TikTok’s US business, Reuters has reported.
The future of the app used by nearly half of all Americans has been up in the air since a 2024 law, passed with overwhelming bipartisan support, required ByteDance to divest TikTok by Jan 19.
The app briefly went dark just before that deadline.
Trump, after taking office for a second term on Jan 20, signed an executive order seeking to delay by 75 days the enforcement of the law, allowing TikTok to continue its operations in th US temporarily. REUTERS
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