In a move widely anticipated by market analysts, online marketplace giant eBay has formally turned down a staggering $55.5 billion unsolicited takeover proposal from meme stock-famous video game retailer GameStop, dismissing the offer as neither credible nor attractive.
The size gap between the two firms alone set the stage for a quick rejection: GameStop’s total market valuation amounts to only roughly a quarter of eBay’s. Beyond the lopsided scale, eBay’s Board of Directors highlighted deep uncertainty surrounding the financing of the proposed deal, even after GameStop announced it had secured a $20 billion debt commitment from TD Securities to back the acquisition.
In an official letter addressed to GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen, the eBay board emphasized that it is currently a strong, resilient business with a working turnaround strategy, even amid years of mounting competitive pressure from larger e-commerce players including Amazon, Etsy and the fast-growing Chinese platform Temu. The board outlined multiple core concerns that drove its decision, including risks to eBay’s long-term growth trajectory and profit margins, significant operational uncertainties, unclear leadership arrangements for the combined company, and questions around GameStop’s own corporate governance structure.
GameStop first rose to global notoriety during the 2021 meme stock craze, when a coordinated movement of retail investors bought up massive volumes of shares in the heavily shorted brick-and-mortar retailer, sending its share price swinging wildly and upending traditional Wall Street betting dynamics. Today, the company operates roughly 1,600 physical stores across the world, with the vast majority located in the United States.
Cohen has previously hinted that if eBay’s board rejected the offer, he would take the proposal directly to eBay’s individual shareholders, leaving the door open for a potential proxy fight to push the deal forward. The BBC has reached out to GameStop for additional comment following eBay’s official rejection, and has not yet received a response.
Market observers have echoed eBay’s skepticism of the deal. Forrester retail analyst Sucharita Kodali told the BBC that the bid was never a strong proposition, noting that it would burden eBay with significant new debt from the financing. Even so, recent financial results show eBay has been making gradual progress on its turnaround: the firm reported a 2025 net profit of $418.4 million, more than tripling the $131.3 million profit it posted in 2024, even as total annual sales declined year-over-year. For his part, Cohen has claimed he can unlock far greater value at eBay, positioning the platform to compete directly with industry leader Amazon under his leadership.