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CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 69% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work, and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 69% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work, and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

ByteDance IPO

Chinese start-up ByteDance became a household name after launching its famous TikTok app in 2017. Discover when ByteDance is expected to list and how you can start trading the IPO today with IG.

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Why trade ByteDance's IPO with IG?

Trade before the IPO

Get exposure before the listing by trading the predicted market cap – exclusively with IG

Speculate 24/7

Buy or sell our ByteDance (Tik Tok) IPO market around the clock with CFDs1

Trade ByteDance stock

Trade ByteDance stock with a live account

How to trade the ByteDance IPO

You can trade the ByteDance IPO before and after it lists on the stock market.

  • Before the listing
  • After the listing

Trade IG's ‘grey market’ ahead of the Bytedance (TikTok) listing. The price reflects what our clients expect ByteDance’s market cap to be at the end of its first trading day.

With our grey market, you can:

  • ‘Buy’ if you think the market cap will be higher than the price indicated
  • ‘Sell’ if you think the market cap will be lower than the price indicated

You could trade ByteDance (TikTok) after the listing by speculating on its share price movements.

With IG, you can:

  • Choose to trade derivatives such as CFDs

When could the ByteDance (TikTok) IPO happen?

The date for the ByteDance IPO has not been confirmed. Speculation surrounding the IPO date has been rife, with the firm currently reported to be eyeing a 2021 listing in Hong Kong or Shanghai.

At this point, it is unclear whether TikTok will form part of the IPO. Tensions between China and the US are running high, and Trump has threatened to ban the social media platform. It’s also possible that Microsoft will buy a portion of TikTok from ByteDance before the latter can list.

Our analysis on the ByteDance (TikTok) IPO

By Chris Beauchamp

The popularity of ByteDance among IG clients trading the grey market continues, with the firm’s expected market capitalisation topping $200 billion.

Indeed, the expected market cap went from $160 billion on 24 June to $200 billion by the end of the last full week of June, a sign of resurgent risk appetite and helped along by news that the firm reported a 130% increase in Q1 revenues compared to last year, to $5.6 billion. The boom in social networking has come as economies across the globe went into lockdown, with TikTok itself recording 315 million downloads in quarter one (Q1).

This alone would be enough to drive an upsurge in interest ahead of the IPO but as social media titan Facebook hits a rocky patch with advertisers TikTok has become even more popular. As advertisers cut back on spending on ads seen on Mark Zuckerberg’s platform, so they will cast around for other destinations for their funds. And as TikTok explodes in popularity, reaching more people, so the attraction of ads on that platform increases, driving up revenue.

TikTok is unlikely to surpass Facebook for the time being as the premier social media platform, but with such huge growth in user numbers it is easy to see why the IG grey market has seen such a rise in recent weeks.

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Fast execution on a huge range of markets

Enjoy flexible access to 17,000 global markets, with reliable execution

React faster with powerful technology

Our platform and apps are intuitive and highly responsive, so trading opportunities are always within reach

Grow your confidence with an established provider

We’re a FTSE 250 company that’s been leading our industry for nearly 50 years, so our expertise is second to none

Start trading now

Log in to your account now to access today’s opportunity in a huge range of markets.

Start trading now

Log in to your account now to access today’s opportunity in a huge range of markets.

What is ByteDance’s business model?

ByteDance’s business model is centred around mobile apps and content platforms, such as the news recommendation engine Toutiao and social media video app TikTok. Toutiao offers a tailor-made news feed to users based on how they interact with the content. TikTok is an app that lets users create and share short lip-syncing, comedy and talent videos.

ByteDance relies heavily on advertising for income, but it is always looking to develop new products that could fortify its revenue stream. It has more than three times the number of active users than rival Snapchat, which held its IPO in 2017.

Is ByteDance (TikTok) profitable?

Yes, ByteDance (TikTok) is profitable, as the company is reported to have made net profits of over $3 billion from revenues of $17 billion in 2019.2 This reflected a phenomenal year of growth for the firm, which is reported to have generated a loss of $1.2 billion in 2018,3 from estimated revenues of $7.4 billion.4

In 2020, the company’s growth has continued. It reportedly generated $5.6 billion in revenue in Q1, and is targeting revenues of around $28.7 billion for the year.4

What happens to our ByteDance IPO price if TikTok is banned in the US or another country?

If TikTok is banned in the US or any other country, we will continue to price our ByteDance (TikTok) IPO grey market as normal. That’s because the price reflects the balance of buyers and sellers on our platform, and therefore likely to move as sentiment towards ByteDance shifts.

The market’s price is likely to move in response to real-world events, including changes in regulation, the sale of products, acquisition and shifts in strategy.

What happens to our ByteDance grey market price if TikTok is sold?

If TikTok is sold – in whole or in part – we will continue to price our ByteDance (TikTok) IPO grey market. Again, that’s because the price reflects the balance of buyers and sellers on our platform, and therefore moves as sentiment towards ByteDance shifts. For example, the market was volatile when Microsoft announced it was thinking of purchasing TikTok’s US business, and when Trump announced he was thinking of banning the social media platform.

If TikTok is sold in full, we will change the name of our grey market from ‘ByteDance (TikTok) IPO’ to ‘ByteDance IPO’. However, the name will remain unchanged if the company sells only a portion of TikTok.

How do IPOs work?

IPOs – short for ‘initial public offerings’ – happen when a company decides to list its shares on an exchange. This means the public can then buy or trade the shares. IPOs can create a lot of public interest, especially if the company is doing well. To learn more about IPOs and how they work, watch this short video.

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Choose the UK’s No.1 CFD provider1

Why open a trading account with anyone but the best provider? With over 45 years of experience, we're proud to offer a truly market-leading service.

*Demo accounts are only available for spread betting and CFD trading.

Choose the UK’s No.1 CFD provider1

Why open a trading account with anyone but the best provider? With over 45 years of experience, we're proud to offer a truly market-leading service.

*Demo accounts are only available for spread betting and CFD trading.

Choose the UK’s No.1 CFD provider1

Why open a trading account with anyone but the best provider? With over 45 years of experience, we're proud to offer a truly market-leading service.

Choose the UK’s No.1 CFD provider1

Why open a trading account with anyone but the best provider? With over 45 years of experience, we're proud to offer a truly market-leading service.

Start trading now

Log in to your account now to access today’s opportunity in a huge range of markets.

Start trading now

Log in to your account now to access today’s opportunity in a huge range of markets.

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1Based on revenue (published financial statements, 2022).