TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, recovered from a prior valuation of $223 billion, although it’s still below the $400 billion peak of 2021.
Per Reuters report, ByteDance, the tech giant behind the popular social media TikTok, recently valued itself at $300 billion during a share buyback offer priced at about $180 per share.
The given offer was the third buyback program Bytedance has conducted for its investors since 2022. It provided an increase of 12.9% from the per-share price of $160 registered in their last buyback program (December 2023) and a way to boost the company’s liquidity.
Despite ByteDance’s prominent position in the media segment and a global revenue of $110 billion, the company is dealing with significant regulatory challenges in the U.S., including a potential nationwide TikTok ban due to concerns over its Chinese ownership and data security risks.
To be more precise, the White House demanded the media giant end its Chinese-based ownership on national-security grounds, or it will be forced to place a ban on TikTok. ByteDance, in its turn, stated that the ban on this virtual platform in the United States would violate freedom of speech and harm local businesses and creators. The company sued in U.S. federal court in May 2024, seeking to block the law which obliges it to divest U.S. assets.
Currently, about 170 million Americans are active users of the virtual short video platform. Many of them capitalise on their content creation, whether advertising their companies’ products or doing full-time vlogging for a living.
Even before the law on possible TikTok ban was issued, separate states had blocked the application not only on official government devices but also for private use. In May 2023, a group of TikTok users filed a lawsuit to get the Montana state administration to cancel the blocking of this digital platform. A few months later, the federal judge’s decision temporarily halted a ban on TikTok in this state.
Despite all these challenges, ByteDance’s fresh valuation signals confidence bolstered by strong U.S. user engagement and investor interest. Another promising sign for the company is a potential shift in policy under President-elect Trump, who has recently taken a softer stance on TikTok and emphasised the importance of fostering competition in the social media sector.
