Trump claims he has ‘a group of very rich people’ ready to buy TikTok

(BBC) US President Donald Trump announced that he has found a buyer for TikTok, the video-sharing app that was banned in the US due to concerns about national security.

In an interview with Fox News, Trump mentioned that he has a group of “very wealthy people” who are eager to purchase the app. “I’ll let you know in about two weeks,” he hinted.

For the sale to go through, it would need the Chinese government’s approval, but Trump told Fox that he believes President Xi Jinping “will probably agree to it.”

This month, Trump postponed the enforcement of a law that requires TikTok to be sold for the third time.

The latest extension gives the parent company ByteDance until 17 September to finalize a deal to sell the app.

The BBC has reached out to TikTok for a response.

A previous attempt to sell TikTok to an American buyer fell through in April when the White House and China had disagreements over Trump’s tariffs.

It’s unclear if the current buyer Trump claims to have is the same one that was interested three months ago.

Last year, the US Congress passed a law that forced TikTok’s sale, with lawmakers worried that the app or its parent company might share US user data with the Chinese government, which TikTok has denied.

Trump had criticized the app during his first term, but he now views it as important for his 2024 election campaign and supports its continued operation in the US.

The law was meant to start on 19 January, but Trump has continually postponed its enforcement through executive actions, which have faced criticism for overriding Congress.

TikTok challenged the law’s constitutionality but lost its appeal to the US Supreme Court.