Reuters
- ByteDance is in talks with banks to borrow about $4 billion, according to The Information.
- The TikTok parent company will use the funds to expand overseas, refinance debt, and replenish funds for daily operations.
- Regulations in China have lead to uncertainty around plans for ByteDance's hotly anticipated IPO.
- Sign up here for our daily newsletter, 10 Things Before the Opening Bell.
Tik Tok's parent company ByteDance is in talks with banks to borrow about $4 billion to refinance debt and fund an overseas expansion, according to a report from The Information.
The owner of the popular social-media platform is taking advantage of low interest rates and will use the loans to repay debt and replenish funds for daily operations, per Bloomberg, which cited a person familiar with the matter who requested anonymity because the negotiations are private.
The bank loans come as a regulatory crackdown on China's technology sector casts doubt over the timing of ByteDance's hotly anticipated IPO.
In August, it was reported that ByteDance is targeting an IPO in Hong Kong in either he fourth quarter of 2021 or early 2022. The company is reportedly working with authorities to satisfy data security issues after after Chinese regulators voiced concerns about the issue earlier this summer.
In late March, ByteDance traded at a valuation of over $250 billion in private markets.