GameStop Might Withdraw Bid To Buy eBay

GameStop may pull back its offer to buy online auction site eBay. According to a new report, there’s been internal talks at the gaming retailer about a potential partnership rather than an acquisition.

Bloomberg’s Liana Baker reports that GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen is “considering proposing a partnership or joint venture that would enable eBay to leverage GameStop’s roughly 1,600 US retail locations.”

GameStop’s Bid Has Fallen Flat

In May, Cohen and GameStop made a public offer to purchase eBay for $55 billion. Cohen, as part of his efforts to buy the company, gave up a potential $35 billion payout and requested his company put the full focus on the acquisition.

Though eBay had rejected the proposal a week after it was made, Cohen remained bullish on the idea of purchasing eBay. In multiple interviews, he’s claimed that GameStop could run the company better than it’s currently being run.

Since then, however, GameStop’s value has continued to sink. The company’s stock price has fallen roughly 27% from $26.53 to $19.24 per share as of writing. GameStop currently has a market cap of $8.66 billion. EBay, on the other hand, has a market cap of $48.02 billion with shares trading at $107.99 as of publication.

As part of any partnership, GameStop would want representation on eBay’s board of directors.

A final decision on what to do hasn’t been made, the report adds. Cohen, Baker writes, is still weighing all options.

What do you think happens between GameStop and eBay, and the former’s attempt to acquire the online auction site? Leave your thoughts down in the comments and in the official Insider Gaming Discord.

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