GameStop submits $56 billion offer to buy eBay
Update, March 4, 10AM ET: The story has been updated to reflect GameStop's submitted proposal to eBay on Monday.
GameStop has proposed to acquire eBay for $125 per share, totaling a $56 billion bid. According to GameStop's proposal, the figure would be 50 percent cash and 50 percent GameStop common stock.
GameStop detailed in the proposal that it has approximately $9.4 billion in cash and liquid investments as of January 31 and that GameStop's roughly 1,600 locations in the US would give eBay a network for authentication, intake, fulfillment and live commerce. GameStop's CEO, Ryan Cohen, also wrote that he would become the CEO of the combined company following the deal's closing in the offer letter, adding that he would be "compensated solely based on the performance of the combined company." In response, eBay confirmed receipt of the unsolicited proposal but clarified that it had no discussions or outreach from GameStop before the submitted bid.
The official offer followed a Wall Street Journal report on Friday that the GameStop was about to make an offer to acquire eBay. The WSJ noted that GameStop's market value sat at around $11 billion, while eBay towered over it with a $45 billion market value, as of Friday's market close.
It's important to note that Cohen could receive a $35 billion in stock if he meets certain criteria, including increasing GameStop's market value to $100 billion. Acquiring eBay could also be a part of Cohen's plans to evolve GameStop beyond its reputation as a video games and collectibles retailer.
However, the company has experienced plenty of ups and downs in recent history. In 2022, GameStop attempted to build a marketplace for non-fungible tokens that ultimately shuttered a couple of years later. More recently, GameStop announced its plans to pivot towards retro gaming at select locations. While the company is still throwing ideas at the wall and seeing what sticks, it also closed down more than 400 retail locations across the US earlier this year.