Update, March 4 at 10 a.m. ET: The story has been updated to reflect the proposal GameStop submitted to eBay on Monday.
GameStop offered to acquire eBay for $125 per share, for a total of $56 billion. According to The GameStop proposalthe figure would be 50 percent cash and 50 percent GameStop common stock.
GameStop detailed in the proposal that it had approximately $9.4 billion in cash and liquid investments as of Jan. 31 and that the approximately 1,600 GameStop locations in the United States would give eBay an authentication, intake, fulfillment and live trading network. GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen also wrote that he would become CEO of the combined company after the deal closes in 2017. offer letteradding 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 there had been no discussions or contact from GameStop prior to the submitted offer.
The official offer followed a Wall Street Journal reported Friday that GameStop was close to making a bid to acquire eBay. THE WSJ noted that GameStop’s market value stood at around $11 billion, while eBay dominated it with a market value of $45 billion, as of Friday’s market close.
Importantly, Cohen could receive $35 billion in stock if he meets certain criteria, including increasing GameStop’s market value to $100 billion. The eBay acquisition could also be part of Cohen’s plans to grow GameStop beyond its reputation as a video game and collectibles retailer.
However, the company has experienced many ups and downs in its recent history. In 2022, GameStop attempted to create a market for non-fungible tokens which finally closed its doors a few years later. More recently, GameStop announced its intention to move towards retro game at selected locations. While the company continues to throw ideas at the walls and see what sticks, it has also closed its doors more than 400 points of sale in the United States earlier this year.
