Well, Tiktok is not listed on a stock exchange, therefore it is not possible to directly invest in Tiktok. Tiktok is owned by ByteDance which is a private company. So, if you want to invest in Tiktok then you have to buy shares indirectly through the private equity companies that own ByteDance shares!
Key Takeaways
- Tiktok is owned by a private company named ByteDance
- It is not possible to directly invest in Tiktok via stock exchanges
- If you want to invest in Tiktok then you have to invest in the parent company ByteDance
- SoftBank (SFTBY) and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) are two major investors in Tiktok
- You will need a brokerage account to indirectly invest in Tiktok
Company Overview: Tiktok
Released by ByteDance in September 2016; Tiktok is a very popular video-sharing and hosting service. Tiktok is owned by ByteDance which is a chines company. In China, Tiktok is known as Douyin. You can upload short videos with durations from 15 seconds to ten minutes in Tiktok. Tiktok has apps for both Android and iOS platforms. Tiktok has 1.39 billion users around the world. There are only three social media platforms in the world that have more users than Tiktok and they are Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. You will be surprised to know that Tiktok is available in more than 40 languages. In October 2020, Tiktok exceeded 2 billion mobile downloads on Android and iOS platforms.
Key Information of Tiktok
| Company Name | TikTok Pte. Ltd. |
| Country | China |
| Operating System | iOS, iPad, Android |
| Industry | Video sharing |
| Parent Company | ByteDance (Private) |
| Ticker | N/A |
| Revenues | $12 billion |
| Employees | 300+ |
| Website | tiktok.com |
Is it Possible to Invest in Tiktok?
Well, it is possible to invest in Tiktok but you can’t conventionally invest in Tiktok. This is because Tiktok is not a private company and it is not traded on any stock exchange. Basically, Tiktok is owned by ByteDance which is a private company. So, you can’t directly buy the shares of Tiktok as long as the company is going public. Hence, an indirect investment is the only way you can invest in Tiktok.
How to Invest in Tiktok?
Now that we know, indirect investment is the only way you can invest in Tiktok; so how you can invest indirectly in Tiktok. Well, the parent company of Tiktok is ByteDance and many publicly traded companies have invested in ByteDance. For example, SoftBank (SFTBY) and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) are two major investors in Tiktok. So, what you can do is, invest in these firms to indirectly invest in Tiktok. SoftBank (SFTBY) is a publicly traded Japanese bank and it is renowned for investing in Slack, NVIDIA, Uber, and many other technology companies. On the other hand, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts is a New York, USA-based investment firm. Now you can invest in any of these investment firms to indirectly invest in Tiktok. You will need a brokerage account to invest in these investment firms. In the future, if ByteDance becomes public then you can directly invest in ByteDance through your brokerage account.
Key Statistics of Tiktok
| Year | Annual Revenue | Annual Users | Annual Daily Active Users | Cumulative Downloads |
| 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 | 63 Million 150 Million 350 Million 2640 Million 4697 Million | N/A 133 Million 381 Million 700 Million 902 Million | 33 Million 150 Million 400 Million 600 Million 710 Million | 68 Million 200 Million 857 Million 1579 Million 2560 Million |
Important facts about Tiktok
- On average, Tiktok users spend more than 850 Minutes per Month on the App
- Tiktok has more than 1 billion monthly users in 2022
- The Tiktok app was installed more than 3 billion times
- In one internet minute, 167 million Tiktok videos are watched
- By hashtag views, Entertainment is the most popular content category on TikTok
- Tiktok is the 2nd most popular iPhone app downloaded in the U.S. in 2021
- Tiktok was the most popular overall app downloaded globally in 2020 and 2021
- Tiktok app is available in more than 150+ countries around the world
- Tiktok has the highest social media engagement rates per post
- Tiktok has more than 600 million active daily users in china
- More than 80% of Tiktok’s revenue comes from China
- ByteDance, the parent company of Tiktok had a 93% revenue rise in 2020, they had a $19 billion gross profit in 2020
- More than 90% of the Tiktok app’s downloads are on the Android platform
- 9 out of 10 Tiktok users use the Tiktok app multiple times in a day
- The Tiktok official website had an Alexa ranking of 59 in January 2022
FAQs about Can I Invest in Tiktok
Can I buy stock in TikTok?
No, you can’t buy stock in Tiktok. This is because TikTok is not publically traded and its parent company “ByteDance” is also a private company. Therefore, it is not possible to buy stock in Tiktok.
Will Tiktok ever be publicly traded?
Well, the answer to this question depends on the parent company “ByteDance.” Recently ByteDance stated that Tiktok will have its IPO at some point. The IPO of Tiktok will be separated from ByteDance’s IPO.
How much is a TikTok share?
Currently, the price of Tiktok shares is zero. Tiktok isn’t traded publically yet, therefore the Tiktok share has no value.
Is Tiktok a private company?
Yes, Tiktok is a privet company. The parent company of Tiktok is ByteDance and it is also a private company.
References:
https://influencermarketinghub.com/tiktok-stats/
https://www.businessofapps.com/data/tik-tok-statistics/
https://www.wallstreetzen.com/blog/how-to-buy-tiktok-stock/
Last Updated on December 25, 2023 by Magalie D.
Magalie D. is a Diploma holder in Public Administration & Management from McGill University of Canada. She shares management tips here in MGTBlog when she has nothing to do and gets some free time after working in a multinational company at Toronto.
