Dec 11, 2020 - Technology

TikTok owner ByteDance set to become world's most valuable VC-backed company

Dan Primack

A gif shows an ambition of several cursor-like hands, moving in and out, pointing at the stars from the Chinese flag — Illustration: Rebecca Zisser/Axios

ByteDance is closing in $2 billion in new funding co-led by KKR and existing backer Sequoia Capital at a $180 billion valuation, per Reuters.

Why it matters: This would cement China-based ByteDance as the world's most valuable VC-backed company, worth 3X the next-largest unicorn, and comes despite the U.S. government's efforts to force its divestiture of TikTok.

The bottom line: "In its home market, [ByteDance] is on track to rake in at least 180 billion yuan ($27.2 billion) in advertising revenue this year... Douyin, ByteDance’s Chinese version of TikTok, said it had amassed 600 million daily users in August." — Reuters

Go deeper: TikTok gets more time (again)

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TikTok owner ByteDance set to become world's most valuable VC-backed company

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