Billionaire entrepreneur Frank McCourt, best known for his ownership of the Los Angeles Dodgers, has announced that his firm, Project Liberty, alongside its consortium of partners, The People’s Bid, is making a formal offer to purchase TikTok’s U.S. assets from ByteDance.
This bid comes ahead of the January 19 deadline, set by a law signed by President Joe Biden on April 24, which mandates ByteDance to either sell or face a potential ban on the platform in the United States. Although the exact financial details have not been disclosed, the consortium has garnered significant interest from major private equity funds, family offices, and high-net-worth individuals, who are offering substantial equity capital. Additionally, a prominent U.S. bank is backing the deal with debt financing.
Project Liberty, led by McCourt, formed this consortium last year with the intention of acquiring TikTok’s U.S. operations. McCourt emphasized that the proposal aims to preserve the platform for millions of Americans while ensuring that it continues to operate smoothly without relying on TikTok’s current algorithm, thus avoiding the threat of a ban. “We are committed to keeping TikTok alive and providing a stable, enjoyable platform for U.S. users,” McCourt stated. “We look forward to collaborating with ByteDance, President-elect Trump, and the incoming administration to finalize this deal.”
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