gamestop / ebay / merger

GameStop has made an unsolicited $56 billion bid to acquire eBay, offering $125 per share — about a 20% premium — in a cash-and-stock proposal, Reuters reports. CEO Ryan Cohen, who already owns roughly 5% of eBay, said he believes eBay is undervalued and aims to build it into a company worth hundreds of billions; if eBay rebuffs the offer, Cohen plans a proxy contest to take the proposal directly to shareholders. GameStop has secured a $20 billion debt financing commitment from TD Bank and may seek outside investors, including Middle Eastern sovereign wealth, to complete the takeover. Analysts note such a reverse-size takeover would rely heavily on leverage and dilution and is unusually ambitious.

GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen has proposed a roughly $56 billion takeover of eBay, according to reports. Cohen says GameStop already owns about a 5% stake in eBay and offered to buy the company at $125 per share in a cash-and-stock deal, representing about a 20% premium to eBay’s closing price last Friday. The proposal signals activist intent by Cohen to reshape or consolidate online marketplaces, potentially combining GameStop’s retail/collectibles focus with eBay’s long-established auction and commerce platform. The bid could trigger strategic decisions at eBay’s board, affect investor dynamics, and reshape competition in e-commerce and secondary markets. Key players: GameStop, CEO Ryan Cohen, and eBay.