TikTok parent ByteDance in early IPO talks to list businesses including short video app Douyin

Chinese technology giant ByteDance is in early stage talks to list some of its businesses including Douyin, a person familiar with the matter told CNBC.

Last week, ByteDance spoke with investment bankers to explore the possibility of an initial public offering (IPO) for some of its divisions, the person said, without wanting to be named because the discussions were private.

Earlier this year, ByteDance spoke to both the Shanghai and Hong Kong stock exchanges, the person said. No timeline or listing venue has been decided.

ByteDance, which is headquartered in Beijing, declined to comment on this story when contacted by CNBC.

Reuters first reported that ByteDance is in discussions to list its short video app Douyin, citing two people familiar with the situation. The hugely popular TikTok video-sharing app, which is owned by ByteDance, is not available in China. Instead, ByteDance runs the equivalent Douyin in China.

But ByteDance could also look to list other businesses such as its news aggregation service Toutiao, the person told CNBC.