Ryan Cohen blasts eBay after $56B bid rejected

GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen criticized eBay’s leadership after the company’s board rejected his $56 billion cash-and-stock takeover proposal, calling the board “a bunch of losers.” The rejection came after Cohen made the offer public this week.

Cohen described the proposal as half cash and half stock, relying in part on GameStop’s $9.4 billion balance sheet and including up to $20 billion in debt financing arranged by TD Securities. He said the package represented about a 46% premium for eBay shareholders.

eBay chairman Paul Pressler wrote to Cohen that the proposal was “neither credible nor attractive,” citing financing risks and concerns about the amount of leverage the transaction would carry.

Cohen accused eBay’s board and management of protecting their own compensation rather than acting as fiduciaries, noting directors received roughly $4 million in fees last year. He also criticized the site’s design and operations, saying the platform “still looks like it did in 1995” and that the company spends more than half of its revenue on operating expenses.

Cohen estimated about $2 billion in potential cost savings and pointed to live commerce as an area where eBay lags competitors and could expand.

Investor reaction was mixed. GameStop shares rose after the bid was disclosed. A prediction market assigned roughly a 16% chance that the acquisition will close. Investor Michael Burry sold his entire GameStop position after a public appearance in which Cohen did not fully explain the deal’s financing; Burry posted, “Never confuse debt for creativity.”

The dispute reached the eBay platform as well: Cohen reported his personal eBay account was suspended while he pursued the bid and was later reinstated, though he remains unable to list items for sale.

eBay’s board highlighted financing and leverage concerns as the primary reasons for rejecting the proposal and said it did not find the combined cash-and-stock structure compelling enough to enter negotiations.

Cohen has indicated he will continue outreach to shareholders. The coming weeks will show whether investors press the board to engage in formal talks; current market indicators assign a low probability to a completed deal.