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Frank McCourt’s Project Liberty Proposes Bid for TikTok’s U.S. Assets

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Frank McCourt, the billionaire entrepreneur and former owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, has announced that his venture, Project Liberty, along with its consortium partners known as The People’s Bid, is making a formal proposal to acquire TikTok’s U.S. assets from ByteDance. This move comes ahead of the January 19 deadline set by a law signed by President Joe Biden, which mandates ByteDance to sell TikTok or face a potential ban in the U.S.

The consortium has not disclosed the exact value of the offer but assured that it has the financial backing to complete the deal. The group highlighted interest from private equity funds, family offices, and high-net-worth individuals, alongside debt financing from one of the U.S.’s largest banks, which will provide the necessary capital to execute the acquisition.

McCourt, who launched Project Liberty last year with the aim of acquiring TikTok’s U.S. operations, emphasized that the acquisition would ensure the platform’s continuity without reliance on the current TikTok algorithm, thereby avoiding a potential ban. He expressed optimism about working with ByteDance, President-elect Donald Trump, and the incoming administration to finalize the deal, ensuring that millions of Americans can continue to use the platform.

 

Billionaire McCourt Open to Keeping Original Investors in Any TikTok Deal

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Business magnate Frank McCourt has expressed a willingness to include TikTok’s current investors, including its founder, in any potential deal to purchase the U.S. operations of the app, which is currently owned by the Chinese company ByteDance. McCourt confirmed in an interview with Reuters that his consortium, Project Liberty, has formally offered to buy TikTok from ByteDance, with a valuation of the app—excluding its algorithm—set at approximately $20 billion.

The bid, McCourt noted, is not contingent upon the involvement of major U.S. investment firms like General Atlantic, Susquehanna, and Sequoia Capital, who hold stakes in ByteDance. McCourt, however, indicated that his group is open to keeping existing investors, including ByteDance founder Zhang Yiming, involved in the deal, pending approval from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS).

ByteDance did not respond to a request for comment regarding the proposed deal. McCourt also stated that Project Liberty has developed a technological solution that addresses the national security concerns that led to U.S. legislation demanding ByteDance divest its ownership of TikTok by Sunday, or face a potential ban in the U.S.

In related developments, President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming national security adviser affirmed that the new administration will work to keep TikTok operating in the U.S. if a viable deal is reached.