New light has been shed on ByteDance’s sale of TikTok’s U.S. assets on Monday evening, after multiple outlets published contradictory reports regarding the U.S. operation of the short video app.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin confirmed in an interview with CNBC that the U.S. government has received a bid from Oracle for TikTok’s U.S. operation. A recommendation will be made to U.S. President Donald Trump after a review by the Committee on Foreign Investment, Mnuchin said.

“We will need to make sure that the code is secure, Americans' data is secure, that the phones are secure. And we’ll be looking to have discussions with Oracle over the next few days with our technical teams,” he told CNBC.

Oracle also confirmed on Monday that “it is part of the proposal submitted by ByteDance to the Treasury Department over the weekend in which Oracle will serve as the trusted technology provider.”

The Wall Street Journal and New York Times both reported that TikTok has rejected Microsoft’s acquisition offer and chosen Oracle as a technical partner for its U.S. operation.

However, sources told China’s state broadcaster CGTN that ByteDance will not sell TikTok’s U.S. operations to Microsoft or Oracle, nor will the Chinese parent company give the source code to any U.S. buyers.

“The United States is now encircling TikTok, which is a typical coerced transaction by the U.S. government,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin slammed on Monday. Wang refused to make further comment, stating China has talked about its position on TikTok many times before.

President Trump has a close relationship with Oracle and has publicly endorsed the company and its chairperson Larry Ellison. “I think Oracle is a great company, and I think its owner is a tremendous guy. He’s a tremendous person. I think that Oracle would certainly be somebody that could handle it,” said Trump in August, when asked about the deal.

A long-term vocal supporter of Trump, Ellison held a fundraiser for the president at his estate in California in February. According to federal records, executives of the tech giant have also made significant donations to Trump’s re-election campaign. CEO Safra Catz and Associate Director Jeffrey Henley each contributed US$13,000 and over US$55,000 respectively.

When Trump drew controversy in March by pushing the use of hydroxychloroquine in treating COVID-19, Oracle offered to collect data on the disproved anti-malaria drug. Some media reported that Ellison was the one who talked to Trump about its possible use.

“Oracle had a business model — selling software and services to businesses and governments — that allowed it to develop a relationship with Mr. Trump without putting its brand at risk,” former Facebook policy director Matt Perault told New York Times.

Early last month, White House advisor Peter Navarro suggested Microsoft divest its holdings in China and questioned if the company would compromise. In another interview, he cited Microsoft’s Bing search engine and Skype platform, arguing they “effectively are enablers of Chinese censorship, surveillance and monitoring.”

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