Steve Mnuchin Says He Is Putting Together Group to Buy TikTok

Alex Weprin
·2 min read
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Former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin says he wants to pull together a group of investors to buy TikTok.

Mnuchin, who also has connections to Hollywood, announced his plans on CNBC Thursday morning.

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The House of Representatives passed a bill this week that would force TikTok owner Bytedance to divest the video platform, and while the bill’s future in the Senate is uncertain, potential buyers like Mnuchin are already beginning to pull together game plans, should it pass.

“I think the legislation should pass and I think it should be sold,” Mnuchin said. “It’s a great business, and I’m going to put together a group to buy TikTok.”

“This should be owned by U.S. businesses. There’s no way that the Chinese would ever let a U.S. company own something like this in China,” he added.

It is not clear what other companies, firms or people Mnuchin has spoken to, but TikTok would be an expensive acquisition, should the bill pass and ByteDance put it on the market. The video platform has quickly become one of the most popular apps in the U.S., with its short-form, music-laden videos sparking knockoffs from Meta (Reels) and Google (YouTube Shorts).

If ByteDance sells, it is likely that other possible buyers would emerge. Walmart and Oracle were among the companies interested in TikTok when Trump was floating a similar TikTok divestiture plan.

After leaving the Trump White House, Mnuchin launched his own firm called Liberty Strategic Capital, which raised some $2.5 billion to buy and invest in companies, including those developing “new forms of content.”

His firm also acquired a substantial stake in the independent film studio Lionsgate, spending around $50 million for 7.9 percent of the company. Mnuchin was a Goldman Sachs banker before becoming a Hollywood financier, backing films like The Lego Movie, Mad Max: Fury Road and a number of DC Comics titles at Warner Bros.

Late last year he also welcomed a new baby with wife Louise Linton, who is releasing her own romantic comedy called Chick Flick.

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