Trump Administration to Collect $10 Billion Fee From TikTok Deal

TLDR

• The Trump administration will receive ~$10 billion from investors who took control of TikTok’s U.S. operations
• Oracle, Silver Lake, and Abu Dhabi’s MGX are among the investors paying the fee
• $2.5 billion has already been paid to the Treasury, with more payments to follow
• The TikTok U.S. entity is valued at ~$14 billion, though some analysts say this undervalues it
• The deal follows a law requiring ByteDance to reduce its ownership of TikTok’s U.S. business

The Trump administration brokered a deal to keep TikTok running in the United States. As part of that deal, investors who took control of TikTok’s U.S. operations agreed to pay the government roughly $10 billion.

The payment is on top of money already invested to create a new U.S.-based entity to run the app. Investors including Oracle, Silver Lake, and Abu Dhabi’s MGX paid about $2.5 billion to the Treasury when the deal closed in January. They will make several more payments until the total reaches $10 billion.

TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, finalized the deal in January. It created a majority American-owned joint venture called TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC. The new entity manages U.S. user data, apps, and algorithms.

ByteDance still owns nearly 20% of the new entity and licensed its algorithm to it. The U.S. entity is also required to share profits with ByteDance.

Vice President JD Vance said the new U.S. TikTok entity is valued at around $14 billion. Some tech analysts have argued that figure undervalues the company.

How the Fee Compares to Typical Deal-Making

The $10 billion fee is nearly unprecedented for a government helping arrange a private transaction, according to historians. For context, investment bankers on typical deals earn less than 1% of a deal’s value. Bank of America is set to earn around $130 million for advising on Norfolk Southern’s $71.5 billion sale — one of the largest single-bank fees on record.

Administration officials say the fee is justified. They point to Trump’s role in keeping TikTok alive in the U.S. and managing negotiations with China while addressing national security concerns from lawmakers.

The deal was required under a law passed during Trump’s first term. That law forced ByteDance to reduce its ownership of TikTok’s U.S. operations or shut the app down. Lawmakers had raised concerns about a Chinese company holding personal data on over 200 million Americans.

Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi were sued earlier this month by retail investors in rival social media companies. Those investors are seeking to reverse approval of the ByteDance joint venture deal.

The Broader Pattern of Government Stakes in Private Companies

This TikTok arrangement is part of a wider pattern. The Trump administration has also taken a nearly 10% stake in Intel. It agreed to take a share of chip sales to China from Nvidia in exchange for granting export licenses. It has also taken equity stakes in other companies and holds a “golden share” in U.S. Steel following Nippon Steel’s takeover.

The Wall Street Journal first reported the $10 billion fee figure on March 13, 2026.

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