Former Trump officials seek to help Jeffrey Yass in preventing a TikTok ban

Former officials in Donald Trump’s administration have been helping Philly-area billionaire Jeffrey Yass work to prevent a ban of TikTok, according to the New York Times.

Yass’ Bala Cynwyd-based trading firm, Susquehanna International Group, reportedly owns a 15% stake in ByteDance, according to the Wall Street Journal. Yass is the richest man in Pennsylvania. Based on his assets, Forbes estimates his net worth at $28.5 billion while Bloomberg estimates it at nearly $45 billion.

Trump’s apparent help to protect the app from a U.S. government ban is a reversal of the ex-president’s previous stance.

In 2020, the former Republican president tried to ban TikTok himself.

His recent flip-flop represents the continuation of an awkward but potentially symbiotic relationship between Trump and Yass, a prolific political donor who’s become the monied face behind school choice vouchers.

Neither the special counsel for Susquehanna nor a spokesperson for Yass responded to requests for comment before publication Friday.

Bipartisan American legislators are concerned about closeness between the Chinese government and TikTok’s owners. The FBI and Federal Communications Commission have warned that TikTok may be forced to comply with orders to share personal user information with the Chinese government. TikTok has also been accused of using its algorithm to spread misinformation, allegations TikTok has denied.

Yass’ involvement in TikTok began more than a decade ago when, in 2012, his firm became an early investor in ByteDance. The company has since seen an exponential return, as TikTok has become among the world’s most downloaded apps.

Yass is a registered Libertarian and wrote in the Wall Street Journal in April that though Trump may be the best option for school choice, Yass won’t donate to his campaign.

Susquehanna last year bought a chunk of shares in Digital World Acquisitions Corp., which merged in March with Trump’s social media company, Truth Social. Susquehanna said it shorted an equal value of shares, and made the share purchase, not as an investment, but in order to serve as a market-maker when the company became publicly-traded.

Yass, 65, lives on Philadelphia’s Main Line in Haverford.

Staff writer Joseph N. DiStefano contributed reporting.