Model Saudi Arabia: Trump wants US state fund – also for takeover of TikTok
Oil states worldwide have sovereign wealth funds that invest the surplus. Trump wants to do the same — but without the surpluses. It could be used to buy TikTok.
(Image: Camilo Concha/Shutterstock.com)
US President Donald Trump has ordered the establishment of a sovereign wealth fund for the United States and believes that it could be used to buy TikTok, among others. The Reuters news agency reports that the decree itself contains few details. It merely instructs the US Treasury Department to submit a plan within 90 days. The main question is where the money for the fund is to come from. Normally, such funds receive money from a surplus that a country generates. However, the USA has been running up debts for years. At the same time, the announcement underlines the fact that Trump is indeed planning to bring TikTok's US business under the control of the US government.
Many details unclear
The establishment of the planned sovereign wealth fund is to be driven forward by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and the designated Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick. While Trump did not provide any details when signing the executive order, he did state that the fund should reach the size of Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund. Its total assets are estimated at more than 900 billion US dollars, with even larger funds in China and Norway, among others. According to Reuters, Trump has previously stated, among other things, that the new US fund could be filled with revenue from the announced tariffs.
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With the decree to establish a US sovereign wealth fund, the back and forth surrounding TikTok has also taken a new turn. Trump's predecessor Joe Biden actually stipulated that the US offshoot of the popular video app from China must either be sold or blocked in the US before Trump takes office. However, the new US president overrode this and the law, which is still in force, has not been applied since then. Although TikTok is not available in the US app stores of Google and Apple, anyone who has already installed the app can continue to use it. Various potential buyers have positioned themselves, but Trump is now emphasizing that his government should gain influence itself.
(mho)
