GameStop makes $55.5bn takeover offer for eBay

GameStop has launched a $55.5bn bid to acquire eBay, offering $125 per share in a cash and stock deal that values the e-commerce platform $20 above its Friday closing price. The surprise proposal sets up a potential confrontation between two businesses with vastly different scales, histories, and strategic trajectories.

Chief executive Ryan Cohen said eBay could perform significantly better under new leadership and become a genuine rival to Amazon. Speaking to the Wall Street Journal, Cohen stated: "eBay should be worth, and will be worth, a lot more money. It could be a legit competitor to Amazon." Cohen added that he was prepared to take his bid directly to eBay's shareholders if the board rejected the proposal.

The offer is being financed in part through approximately $20bn in debt, backed by a commitment letter from TD Securities. Cohen said he would receive no salary or bonuses if the deal completed, choosing instead to be compensated solely based on the combined company's performance.

eBay said it would consider the proposal. For more on corporate takeover activity in 2026, see Tezons' Business coverage. The deal comes shortly after Etsy sold Depop to eBay for $1.2bn, a transaction that underlined the ongoing consolidation within the consumer marketplace sector.

Wall Street reacted with scepticism. Morgan Stanley said the two companies had fundamentally different business models, whilst Bernstein pointed to GameStop's smaller balance sheet, stating it would be surprised if anything became of the proposal. Sucharita Kodali, a retail analyst at Forrester, described the offer as not a terribly good one, arguing it would saddle eBay with GameStop's debt.

Kodali acknowledged that a link with eBay could lift GameStop's own valuation, given the disparity in size between the two firms. eBay is worth approximately four times more than GameStop, which currently carries a stock market valuation of around $11.9bn. "The truth is, we are not necessarily putting two strong companies together," Kodali said.

Market reaction reflected this uncertainty. eBay shares rose 5% in New York on Monday, whilst GameStop fell more than 9%. The divergence signals that investors view the deal as more beneficial for GameStop than for eBay's existing shareholders.

Cohen outlined plans to cut eBay's costs by $2bn within a year of completing any deal, with the reductions falling primarily across eBay's sales and marketing division. GameStop argued this division had failed to attract new users to a platform with near-universal brand recognition. Cohen also suggested that GameStop's remaining physical retail network, around 1,600 outlets across the United States, could serve as a national infrastructure for eBay's live commerce and other business operations.

GameStop's history adds an unusual dimension to the proposal. The chain became the centre of the meme stock phenomenon during the Covid-19 pandemic, when retail investors bought heavily into companies that professional investors had bet against, driving sharp swings in share prices. Under Cohen, who became chief executive in 2023, the business has undergone a period of stabilisation.

Its net profit rose to $418.4m in 2025, up from $131.3m the previous year, although sales continued to fall. The improved profitability has given Cohen a platform to pursue more ambitious corporate moves, including the accumulation of cash that underpins the eBay approach.

eBay, launched in 1995 as a hobbyist marketplace, was once among the most recognised names in technology. Its user base has contracted significantly, falling to 136 million worldwide from 175 million in 2018, as competition from Amazon and specialist platforms has intensified.

What the GameStop bid means for eBay's competitive position

The proposal forces a strategic question that eBay has long faced independently: whether its brand and marketplace infrastructure, strong in recognition but weakening in user numbers, can be converted into durable competitive advantage. Cohen's argument rests on cost discipline and physical retail integration, but the debt burden that would accompany any deal represents a significant constraint on investment. If eBay's board rejects the bid and Cohen escalates to shareholders, the episode will nonetheless sharpen pressure on eBay's management to set out a credible independent growth strategy.