Trump to act on banning TikTok in US as early as Saturday

President opposes American firm acquiring popular Chinese video-sharing app

TikTok, the wildly popular Chinese-owned video-sharing platform, has been under scrutiny in the U.S. due to security concerns. © Getty Images

YIFAN YU and ALEX FANG, Nikkei staff writers

August 1, 2020 06:08 JST

Updated on August 1, 2020 15:10 JST

PALO ALTO, U.S./NEW YORK -- U.S. President Donald Trump has said he will act on banning TikTok in the U.S. as soon as Saturday, while rejecting the idea of U.S. companies acquiring the popular video-sharing platform from its Chinese owner ByteDance.

"As far as TikTok is concerned, we're banning them from the United States," Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Friday evening in the US as he flew from Florida to Washington.