TikTok owner ByteDance is reportedly aiming for a Hong Kong IPO next year

ByteDance is aiming to list the company on the Hong Kong stock exchange early next year. The firm’s ambition of going public comes at a time when the Chinese government is trying to regulate big tech more than ever with multiple companies canceling their IPOs.

According to a report from Financial Times, the TikTok-owner is planning to go public on the HK stock exchange later this year or early next year. In July, Wall Street Journal noted that the company had shelved its plans for an IPO for now.

ByteDance told Reuters that FT’s reporting was not accurate, but didn’t provide any details.

Last year, the firm raised $5 billion from investors like Sequoia Capital and KKR & co at a valuation of $180 billion. In June, China-based publication 36kr noted that ByteDance’s valuation has soared past $400 billion.

The FT report indicated that the company has nearly 1.9 billion monthly active users across the globe. According to data from analytics firm App Annie, TikTok has already surpassed Facebook as the world’s most downloaded app.

So chances are that by the time ByteDacnce hosts its IPO on the HK stock exchange, TikTok would’ve crossed 2 billion monthly active users.