Zoop, a startup founded by OnlyFans creator Tim Stokely, along with HBAR Foundation, the developer of Hedera, have submitted a joint bid to acquire TikTok from the Chinese company ByteDance, according to Reuters.
Zoop co-founder R. J. Phillips told the agency that a consortium of investors was involved in crafting the proposal. He declined to provide details about the bid or the contributors backing it.
The proposal has been submitted to the White House for consideration.
“Our bid to acquire TikTok is not just a change of ownership; it represents a new paradigm where both creators and their communities directly benefit from the value they generate,” Phillips emphasized.
According to the New York Times, Amazon is also among the contenders to purchase TikTok.
Previously, U.S. authorities mandated ByteDance to either sell the platform by April 5 or face a ban in the United States.
Back in January, AI startup Perplexity AI announced its intention to acquire the American TikTok.
On March 4, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian joined a group of investors looking to buy the American segment of the social network’s business.