- ByteDance in talks to raise another $2 billion
- ByteDance is the parent company behind the viral sensation TikTok
- The new funding will contribute to a valuation of $180 billion
- Sequoia and other investors are to finance the new investment
ByteDance, the company behind the viral video app TikTok is once again in the conversation. Reports suggest that the company is to raise another $2 billion. It’s before the initial public offering of a large chunk of its international businesses. This points towards the Hong Kong StockExchange.
ByteDance Ltd. is a multinational internet technology company headquartered in Beijing. It is legally domiciled in the Cayman Islands. The company was founded by Zhang Yimimg in 2012. Reportedly the company is worth over US$100 billion as of May 2020.
Investors, and existing backers like Sequoia, are in the running to finance the new investment. Sequoia and Oracle have significant ties to Trump through Republican mega-donors. Douyin and Toutiao are huge drivers for the company’s revenues.
Last year it generated 120 billion yuan in revenue. Around 67% of revenue came from the ads sold on its domestic app. It includes Douyin, TikTok’s Chinese version, and news aggregator Toutiao. The company raised its 2020 revenue at 200 billion yuan ($28.7 billion).
TikTok and other businesses contributed 30 billion yuan, or 15% according to the investor. ByteDance is one of the most valuable privately held, venture-backed technologies in the world. Any new investment would be an indication that investors are shrugging off previous concerns.
Future aspects of the company
The future depends upon the presidential elections in the U.S. and court battles that remain underway. If Biden joins, it could scuttle the planned deals between TikTok, Oracle, and Walmart. There’s also confusion among TikTok deal’s participants over who will own what.
U.S. government troubles with TikTok stem from a few different sources. Users on the platform managed to troll a deeply vindictive president. This turned one of his planned marquee campaign events into a farce.
This accounts more importantly to the nation, but apparently less so to the administration. The company’s ties with China can expose U.S. citizens’ data to the CCP. Users can face manipulation through TikTok’s decision on what to post or not post on the app.
Sequoia and ByteDance had not responded to a request for comment at the time of publication.
