Ryan Cohen has given up a pay package that could have been worth more than $35 billion. His reason, GameStop said in a press release, is that he wants to concentrate fully on turning the business around and buying eBay.
The package, a CEO Performance Award, would have handed Cohen 171.5 million share options if he lifted GameStop’s market value to $100 billion and its adjusted profits to $10 billion. Shareholders were due to vote on it before the annual meeting on July 7. At Cohen’s request, the award came out of the proxy statement.
He also said he will put $500 million of his own money into the deal “to demonstrate his conviction,” as Business Insider reported. The sum backs a non-binding proposal GameStop made on May 3, valuing eBay at roughly $55.5 billion. The offer is half cash and half stock at $125 per share, a 46% premium to eBay’s price in early February 2026.
The pitch
Cohen laid out his case on the “All-In” podcast. eBay’s costs are bloated, he said, and could be cut. He sees a role for eBay in live commerce, with GameStop’s roughly 1,600 US stores filling orders and doubling as studios for content creators. He also wants a marketplace for digital items from video games.
“When you look at how much the businesses together make sense, and then you look at the fact that it’s within my circle of competence, I can’t stop thinking about it,” Cohen said.
GameStop has said the combination could produce more than $2 billion in annual cost savings, mainly through marketing and product development. It cited about $9.4 billion in available cash plus additional financing commitments. The $500 million pledge was meant to ease doubts about whether it could actually close a deal this size.
eBay says no
eBay is worth $48 billion, more than five times GameStop’s size. Its board rejected the cash-and-stock offer in May, calling it neither credible nor attractive. Cohen has not backed off. In a June 19 interview with Piers Morgan he declined to rule out a hostile takeover, an attempt to buy the company over the board’s objections.
His pay deal drew fire. Michael Burry, of “The Big Short” fame, said in early May that he had sold his GameStop stake because he doubted the eBay plan. He suggested the dilutive deal would help Cohen reach his market cap and profit targets and trigger a huge payout. GameStop noted in a filing that Cohen would not have gotten a windfall just for acquiring eBay, because his performance hurdles were to be adjusted for a stock-based purchase.
GameStop said it would release fresh details on its eBay plans, including how it would run the combined company. GameStop and eBay did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Sources
- GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen scraps $35 billion pay deal and explains why he wants to buy eBay
- GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen invests $500M of his own money in eBay takeover bid
