Abu Dhabi royals to buy 15% stake in TikTok’s US business

The Abu Dhabi royal family is set to buy a stake in TikTok’s US businesses, paving a way to shift TikTok's ownership.

The announcement came on the heels of Donald Trump’s approving the sale of TikTok through executive order at the valuation of $14 billion.

According to the deal, MGX, a fund chaired by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, will take a 15 percent stake along with having a board seat to manage the operations of the popular short video app.

Under the new proposed agreement, Larry Ellison’s Oracle, Abu Dhabi’s MGX and Silver Lake will hold a stake of 45 percent in US TikTok. Around 65 percent of shares will be controlled by American companies, along with key US investors, including Rupert Murdoch and Michael Dell.

However, Chinese investors and ByteDance will possess 19.9 percent share in US-based TikTok operations.

According to JD Vance, US Vice President, “This deal really does mean that Americans can use TikTok, but actually use it with more confidence than in the past. Because their data is going to be secure and it’s not going to be used as a propaganda weapon against our fellow citizens.”

Chinese officials previously announced that China will retain the ownership of the algorithm.

On the contrary, Trump’s executive order will allow the US companies to control and monitor the algorithm under the new venture.