The Chinese company TikTok has finally appointed a new permanent chief executive, eight months after its former leader called it quits as the United States was threatening to ban the app.
The company on Friday announced that it had named Shouzi Chew as CEO. He joined the company earlier this year as chief financial officer of ByteDance, TikTok’s Chinese owner. He had previously been a top executive at Xiaomi, the Chinese smartphone maker, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Vanessa Pappas, who previously served as TikTok’s interim head, is moving to the role of chief operating officer of TikTok.”The leadership team of Shou and Vanessa sets the stage for sustained growth,” ByteDance CEO Yiming Zhang said in a statement.
“Shou brings deep knowledge of the company and industry, having led a team that was among our earliest investors, and having worked in the technology sector for a decade. He will add depth to the team, focusing on areas including corporate governance and long-term business initiatives.”
How TikTok evolves around the US-decisions
Chew is based in his hometown of Singapore, suggesting that the company no longer feels it needs a US-based leader.
Last year, it had tapped an American executive — Disney (DIS) veteran Kevin Mayer — for the top job, in a move that was widely seen as an attempt to win over US lawmakers.
TikTok, for its part, has said that it stores American user data on US-based servers, with a backup in Singapore, and that its data isn’t subject to Chinese law. But skeptics argue that TikTok’s parent, ByteDance, is ultimately a Chinese business that’s still beholden to Beijing.
TikTok declined to comment on the Biden administration’s request in February, but was not opposing the government’s motion, according to a court filing.
Source: CNN
