Microsoft Tiktok deal: Donald Trump tell US treasury to collect cut afta ban threat

Donald Trump

EPA
Donald Trump

Donald Trump say di American goment suppose get cut inside di sale of TikTok US unit if na American company dey buy am.

Di US president say im make di demand for “substantial portion” of di purchase price for inside one phone call wit Microsoft oga last weekend.

E also warn say im go ban di app, wey Chinese company ByteDance get, on 15 September if deal neva dey table.

ByteDance dey under pressure to sell dia US business afta Mr Trump threaten to ban dem.

Di Trump administration don accuse TikTok and odas say dem dey give informate alias data to di Chinese government, wetin Beijing and TikTok don deny.

“Di United States suppose get very large percentage of dat price, becos we dey make am possible,” Mr Trump say.

WATCH: What is TikTok?
The British Broadcasting Corporation

“E would come from di sale, wey nobody else dey think about but me, but na like dat I dey think, and I think say e dey very fair,” he add.

‘Mafia-like behaviour’

Di request for payment to di US Treasury go make di negotiation dey complicated as sabi pipo tok say such demand to get regulatory approval for takeover deal no be normal tradition.

Nicholas Klein, wey be lawyer at DLA Piper, say generally “di goment no get authority to take cut of private deal through” di Committee on Foreign Investment in di United States, wey be di inter-agency committee wey dey review some foreign investments for fi US.

Tori pipo for China Daily say on Tuesday say Beijing no go accept di “tiff-tiff” of Chinese technology company.

Dem also warn for one editorial say China get “plenty of ways to respond if di administration carry out dia plan smash and grab”.

Microsoft TikTok deal

BBC
Tiktok logo

Charlotte Jee, reporter for MIT Technology Review, magazine wey na Massachusetts Institute of Technology get, say Mr Trump comments dey “pretty astonishing”.

Wen im tok to BBC Today programme, she say: “I hate to say dis but e be Mafia-like behaviour – to threaten ban wey push down di price den say ‘oh we suppose get cut from dat deal afterwards to say thank you for wetin we do there’.

“E be extraordinary behaviour as well becos last week we hear say lawmakers for US dey try look at whether tech companies dey too big and now we hear Trump trying to make one of dem even bigger so e be really, really strange situation to dey inside.”

Tiktok ban: China and US flags around the TikTok logo.

Reuters

Di tok for Microsoft to buy Tik tok no fit continue on Friday afta report say Mr. Trump no support make Microsoft buy di company.

Na wey Mr. Trump don give greenlike na shift for wetin Whitehouse tok before. Di short time also na challenge to start anoda deal.

TikTok US operations “go close down on September 15 unless Microsoft or somebody else dey able to buy am and work out deal, an appropriate deal so di Treasury… of di United States get lot of money,” he say.

Will TikTok be banned?
The British Broadcasting Corporation

White House trade adviser Peter Navarro also suggest say Microsoft go shed dia holdings for China if dem buy TikTok US business.

“So di question be, if Microsoft go compromise?” Mr Navarro say for one interview with CNN. “Maybe Microsoft could divest dia Chinese holdings?”

Microsoft confam on Sunday for blog post say dem go continue discussions on one deal wit TikTok afta call between dia chief executive Satya Nadella and Mr Trump.

Di technology giant no comment further on di conversation between Mr Trump and Mr Nadella pass di blog.

At di weekend, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo say President Trump go take action “in di coming days” against Chinese-owned software companies wey im believe say fit cause national security risk.

Mr Pompeo tell Fox News say TikTok dey among those “giveing data directly to di Chinese Communist Party”.

However, he nogive any evidence to back up im claim.