ByteDance, the Chinese parent company of the popular short video app TikTok, has proposed to buy back shares from its employees outside the United States at a price of $160 per share. The company has confirmed this buyback plan.
According to a Reuters report, the price per restricted stock unit is consistent with the offer that ByteDance extended to current and former U.S. employees in October. The report mentioned that the company intends to purchase a minimum of $300 million worth of stock at the rate of $160 per share.
As stated in the Reuters report, the valuation based on this price placed the company at $223.5 billion, indicating a decrease of approximately 26% compared to its valuation a year ago. In the prior year, ByteDance had been valued at $300 billion through a buyback program that was made available to its non-U.S. employees.
The source further indicated that the recent price of $160 represents an increase compared to the earlier April buyback price of $155.
A spokesperson from ByteDance has verified the share repurchase program for employees outside of the United States, highlighting its goal to furnish liquidity options for its staff through such initiatives. The company has consistently provided buyback programs twice annually to eligible current and former employees since 2017.
Employee buyback programs enable staff to convert their shares into cash without having to wait for the company to go public on the stock market. Although the prospect of an initial public offering (IPO) for ByteDance has been eagerly awaited for some time, the company has stated since 2021 that it has no immediate plans for an IPO, citing the increased regulatory scrutiny faced by China's technology giants from the authorities in Beijing.
