London
Centricus Asset Management Ltd. and Triller Inc. are seeking to buy TikTok’s operations in the US and several other countries from ByteDance Ltd. for $20 billion, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Investors led by London-based Centricus will partner with US-based Triller, another video and music-based social networking app, which would have a minority stake in a newly proposed joint entity, said the person, who asked not to be identified discussing private negotiations.
Centricus and Triller submitted their bid to Beijing-based ByteDance, this person said, for TikTok’s assets in the U.S., Australia, New Zealand and India. The proposal would be made up of $10 billion in cash up front and $10 billion in profit-sharing from the resulting venture, the person said.
The offer would rival those from more established tech industry players, including Microsoft Corp. and Oracle Corp. Walmart Inc. said on Thursday that it has joined Microsoft’s bid.
When asked about a Centricus and Triller bid, a TikTik spokesman replied, “What’s Triller?” A separate spokeswoman called the potential deal “preposterous.”
A representative for Centricus declined to comment, while Triller didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
President Donald Trump this month threatened to ban the TikTok app in the U.S. and then ordered ByteDance sell its U.S. assets, citing national security concerns.
The administration is also demanding that the buyer of TikTok’s U.S. business be an American company, which makes it unclear how a Centricus bid will be received, even with Triller involved.
