Video games retailer GameStop made an offer Sunday of $55 billion to buy eBay. The proposal seeks 100% of the company at $125 per share in cash and stock, a news release reads.
Quietly, GameStop has built a 5% stock in eBay leading up to the abrupt proposal.
Why is GameStop making an offer for eBay?
In the news release, GameStop cited some areas of improvement the online marketplace could make, and promised to deliver.
- Failure to add new users
- Growing product development expenses
- Consolidated finance, HR, real estate, legal, IT and professional services
GameStop cited an increase in user spending, but noted the relatively small increase in users, from 134 million to 135 million. The news release claims GameStop would offer a greater national network with 1,600 stores for improved authentication, intake, fulfillment and live commerce.
The news release promised $2 billion worth of cost reductions within 12 months of closing. eBay spent $2.4 billion on sales and marketing in 2025.
“eBay should be — and will be worth — a lot of money,” GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen told The Wall Street Journal.
“I’m thinking about turning eBay into something worth hundreds of billions of dollars,” he said. “It could be a legit competitor to Amazon.”
GameStop’s rise
The video games retailer has been around for nearly 42 years and launched into fame in 2021 during the meme-stock craze, The Guardian reports.
The retailer originally focused on computer software before a hard shift to focusing on video games that defines it today.
The Guardian reports GameStop’s market valuation was $12 billion before the Friday before its bid to buy, making a $55 billion offer a bold one for eBay, which is currently evaluated at $46 billion.
What if GameStop’s offer isn’t accepted?
Should the offer not be accepted, Cohen says he will bypass the board of directors and go straight to the shareholders for a potential hostile takeover.
The offer is backed by TD Securities for up to $20 billion, according to GameStop’s news release.
The global marketplace confirmed in a statement its receipt of the unsolicited proposal, and said it will carefully review the proposal with the focus of the value it can bring to eBay shareholders.
“The Board will review this proposal with a focus on the value to be delivered to eBay shareholders, including the value of the GameStop stock consideration and the ability of GameStop to deliver a binding, actionable proposal,” the statement said.
In early Monday trading, GameStop’s stock dropped 2% while eBay’s rose 5%, CBS News reports.