TikTok logos are seen on smartphones in front of a displayed ByteDance logo in this illustration taken November 27, 2019.
Dado Ruvic | Reuters
BEIJING — TikTok owner ByteDance has disbanded its investment department, a company spokesperson told CNBC on Wednesday.
Following an assessment at the beginning of the year, ByteDance decided to “strengthen the focus of the business, reduce investments with low connection (to the main business) and disperse employees from the strategic investment department to various lines of business,” the spokesperson said in a Chinese-language statement translated by CNBC.
The move “strengthens the coordination between strategic research and the business,” the company said.
The news comes as ByteDance is undergoing restructuring since its founder Zhang Yiming stepped down as chairman in the fall. The company has created six business units to focus on different areas from gaming to enterprise software.
ByteDance, which is not publicly traded, is the world’s largest start-up valued at $140 billion, according to CB Insights.
Investments and acquisitions have been a key part of Chinese tech giants’ growth over the years. Companies like Alibaba and Tencent have snapped up smaller players at home and abroad.