(Yicai Global) Sept. 2 -- TikTok’s Chinese owner has no specific plans to go public, its chief financial officer has reportedly said, refuting speculation about an initial public offering by the world’s most valuable startup.

ByteDance has no timetable for an initial public offering, LatePost reported yesterday, citing Julie Gao who was speaking at an internal event held on Aug. 31.

When Gao, a capital markets attorney, joined ByteDance in April, her arrival was taken as a sign that the firm would advance its listing plans. She had been a senior partner at US law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom.

The recent renaming of ByteDance HK Ltd. and Beijing ByteDance Technology Co. Ltd. as Douyin Group Hong Kong and Beijing Douyin Information Service Co. ltd. also were interpreted as changes in the run-up to a stock market floatation.

At the same company event, ByteDance unit Chairman Liang Rubo reportedly said Douyin had not met its own expectations during the past year, so it plans to boost investments in key businesses while cutting spending on non-core projects.

The firm has no big layoffs planned for the time being, Liang said, but “business issues may not be resolved simply by recruiting more staff. It will make problems worse.”

Liang also asked the business team to enhance their business awareness and focus on financial benefits. In future, “some projects should be judged by higher standards regarding return on investment as to whether they are worth investing in.” Douyin’s previous requirement was for the ROI to be greater than one.

Douyin Chairman Zhang Lidong also reportedly said the current macro-environment is not that good, but the company’s business fundamentals remain clear and major segments still have a lot of potential. 

The overseas version of the Douyin app, the ubiquitous TikTok, still has huge potential in the global market when compared with Douyin’s penetration rate in China, Zhang added. Moreover, its e-commerce business is in the early stages, he said.

As of last year, the gross merchandise volume of Douyin’s e-commerce business exceeded CNY700 billion (USD101.4 billion), making it the fastest-growing e-commerce platform in China, LatePost said.

Feishu, Douyin’s enterprise productivity app, has huge potential and a chance to go global, Zhang also said, adding “how to seize it remains quite challenging.” If it can be expanded overseas further, it will be one of Douyin’s most important competitive edges, he is said to have predicted.

Editor: Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi