ByteDance Ltdthe Chinese parent of Tick ​​tockwas valued at $220 billion in a private market investments by a company controlled by a UAE spymaster Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

What happened: Sheikh Tahnoon acquired a stake worth over $100 million from existing investors in recent months. reported Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the matter.

The stake was reportedly bought by Sheikh Tahnoon-associated G42 at a discount to the $300 billion ByteDance committed during its involvement share buyback program.

Another fund bought a $225 billion stake in ByteDance shortly after G42 took the stake, a person familiar with the matter told Bloomberg.

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Why it matters: ByteDance’s rating shift has been credited to the United States, pointing to a possible ban on TikTok, the popular short-form video application, Bloomberg noted.

Washington is concerned about that potential security threats raised by TikTok, and some serious progress has been made in passing regulations for such a ban to come into effect.

Sheikh Tahnoon’s company is reportedly basing its investment on ByteDance’s long-term potential as China overcomes its COVID-era restrictions.

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