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TikTok owner ByteDance starts stock option buy-back, offering employees a higher price amid dim IPO prospects
- The company priced the buy-back at US$155 per unit for current staff, up from US$142 in an April repurchase
- ByteDance has also rebranded its Douyin business unit with a new logo in an effort to distinguish the unit’s broader offerings from the Douyin app
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Coco Fengin Beijing
ByteDance, the owner of TikTok and Douyin, has started a new round of stock option buy-backs from current and former employees, offering a higher price than during an earlier round while the prospect of an initial public offering (IPO) remains low.
The company priced the buy-back at US$155 per unit for current staff, up from US$142 in an April repurchase. For those who have already left the company, the offer is US$116, up from last round’s US$106, according to two people briefed on the plan.
ByteDance declined to comment.
China’s most valuable unicorn has regularly granted and repurchased stock options since 2017 as an incentive to employees. Last month, it decided to repurchase shares from existing investors for the first time, at US$177 apiece, which put the company’s valuation at US$300 billion.
Employees have been more willing to sell their options as the prospects of a windfall from a huge IPO have dimmed, the people said. In August, ByteDance chief financial officer Julie Gao told employees that it has no plans to go public.
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