Trump Mentions Possibility of Murdochs Acquiring US TikTok

(MENAFN) American media tycoon Rupert Murdoch and his son Lachlan are anticipated to become part of a consortium of financiers preparing to acquire TikTok’s US branch, according to US President Donald Trump.

Trump also identified Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and Dell Technologies chief executive Michael Dell as participants in the arrangement, which is designed to stop the widely used Chinese short-video platform from being prohibited in the United States.

During an interview over the weekend, Trump referred to the potential backers as influential figures and “American patriots.”

“They’re very well-known people. Larry Ellison is one of them. He’s involved. This great guy, Michael Dell is involved. I hate to tell you this, but a man named Lachlan is involved. Do you know who Lachlan is? That’s a very unusual name, Lachlan Murdoch,” the president remarked. He further mentioned that Rupert Murdoch is “probably going to be in the group.”

This revelation comes after a preliminary agreement was achieved last week between Washington and Beijing to ensure TikTok remains active in the United States.

The platform, owned by Chinese company ByteDance, has been subject to a nationwide prohibition since January 19, 2025, after its parent entity failed to meet a divestment deadline.

American legislators contended that user information might be accessible to Beijing, which could allow surveillance or propaganda efforts.

Trump extended the suspension of the ban multiple times as negotiations with China carried on.

The latest cutoff date was September 17. Under the forthcoming structure, TikTok’s US holdings would largely be under the control of domestic stakeholders and supervised by a board with national security expertise. ByteDance is expected to maintain under 20% of the new entity.

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