World Street | China's regulatory changes, TikTok's troubles in US, Alphabet's return to $2-trillion club and more

World Street offers a sneak peek into the world of business and economy.

Tech giant Alphabet Inc's market capitalisation is back above $2 trillion. French oil major TotalEnergies is exploring a potential US listing. Troubles for Tiktok in the US may prompt a shutdown of the social media app, China's new market regulations will tighten investments by former employees in pre-IPO companies — all this and more in the April 29 edition of the World Street.

Gearing up for US debut

French oil major TotalEnergies is considering a potential listing in New York, according to Chief Executive Patrick Pouyanne. This move aims to attract a larger share of US-based shareholders.

The Paris-headquartered company has 47 percent of institutional shareholders in the US and 39 percent of all global shareholders based there. Pouyanne said the board has discussed the possibility of a US listing seriously and that a primary listing is being considered, though it's uncertain if the company would maintain its listing in Paris.

Back into the mix

Google parent Alphabet Inc surpassed the  $2 trillion market value mark for the first time since November 2021 on April 26. Investor enthusiasm for the tech giant was fuelled by the announcement from the company regarding its first-ever dividend payout and a substantial $70-billion stock buyback programme.

Tiktok Troubles

ByteDance, the parent company of social media app TikTok, is reportedly inclined to shut down the app instead of selling it if legal avenues to contest legislation banning the platform from US app stores are exhausted, Reuters reported.

The algorithms integral to TikTok's functionality are considered vital to ByteDance's overall operations, making a sale of the app with these algorithms highly improbable, the report said.

Though TikTok contributes a small portion to ByteDance's total revenue and daily active users, in a worst-case scenario, the parent company would prefer to see the app closed down in the US rather than sell it to a potential American buyer, Reuters said.

Wooing investors

The Redstone family and Skydance Media CEO David Ellison have reportedly taken steps to make a potential change in control at Paramount Global more appealing to the company's investors, Bloomberg has reported.

Paramount is in exclusive deal discussions with Skydance Media, led by Ellison, though some investors have urged the company to consider alternative options.

Ellison is said to be offering to purchase a block of Paramount shares at a premium to bolster the company's financial standing, according to the Bloomberg report. He is also in talks with an independent committee of Paramount directors on a potential agreement.

Tightening screws

China's securities regulator announced plans to enhance oversight over investments made by former employees in pre-IPO companies. This step underscores the regulator's dedication to upholding market integrity.

The draft rules from the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) also extend the regulatory framework to include the relatives of former employees, broadening the scope of scrutiny.

(With agency inputs)