So, a $10 billion company is trying to buy a $48 billion company. (It’s GameStop and eBay.)

Thus far:

But the most surprising thing is that this saga might be far from over, especially based on Ryan Cohen’s interviews from the past 24 hours!

Here’s a full breakdown.

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On May 3, GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen unveiled an unsolicited offer to acquire eBay for $125 per share (a 46% premium over where eBay was trading at the time). The deal valued eBay at roughly $56 billion. Half cash, half GameStop stock.

The math is immediately wild. GameStop's entire market cap is about $10 billion. It's sitting on roughly $9 billion in cash. Cohen lined up a $20 billion financing commitment from TD Securities and proposed paying the rest in GameStop shares. And then Cohen has the ability to issue more stock to pay for the deal if he wants to.

Cohen went on CNBC to defend the deal. The interview did not go well. He dodged financing questions, appeared distracted, and the stock dropped 10% immediately after.

On May 12, eBay's board formally rejected the offer, citing "uncertainty around the financing plan, the operational risks involved, and GameStop's governance." Chairman Paul Pressler didn't hold back.

Cohen fired back. He called the board a "bunch of losers," said he's willing to take the offer directly to eBay shareholders, and suggested a proxy fight to replace board members who won't engage.

That's where things stand right now.

Cohen's pitch is that GameStop's 1,600 physical retail stores could become fulfillment and authentication hubs for eBay's marketplace. Buyers could pick up purchases in-store. Sellers could drop off items for verification. Live commerce. Local logistics. Cohen claims this could unlock $2 billion in annual cost synergies.

There's also the broader strategic argument: GameStop's core business (physical game sales) is declining every year as gaming goes digital. Revenue was $5.27 billion in 2024. It's $3.63 billion now. Cohen needs to turn GameStop into something else, and eBay's $22.2 billion in annual GMV would be a massive platform to build on.

And finally, Cohen makes an emotional argument that actually does resonate even with us somewhat: eBay’s CEO Jamie Iannone has never bought his company’s stock on the open market. Often, open market purchases of your own stock as a CEO signal confidence and the drive to make your company better, or at least to increase shareholder value. It’s at least an interesting point that Iannone has never done it.

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From a numbers standpoint, eBay doesn't need saving. Its Q1 2026 results were strong: $3.1 billion in revenue (up 19% year over year), GMV of $22.2 billion (up 18%), operating margins of 29.4%, and a raised full-year outlook. Revenue topped $3 billion for the first time since 2021.

But Ryan Cohen’s argument is that eBay doesn’t want to sell because the eBay executives know that Cohen will just fire them as soon as the deal is through. That’s part of his “cost-cutting plan,” getting rid of what he sees as operational fat in the company.

Regardless, Michael Burry didn’t like Cohen’s offer either. He sold his entire GameStop position specifically because of the leverage the deal would require. When the guy famous for betting against unsustainable leverage bails because of unsustainable leverage, it's probably worth noting.

The deal is legitimate (though risky because of leverage, to Burry’s point). But the main issue is that eBay's board has zero incentive to engage. The company is posting its best numbers in years and doesn't need a lifeline... Also, the eBay execs want to keep their jobs.

If Cohen pushes a proxy fight (i.e. going around the board and trying to convince existing shareholders to vote them out), it could drag on for a long time with no guarantee of success. Meanwhile, GameStop burns credibility and potentially cash pursuing a deal the market isn't buying. GME has already given back the gains from the initial announcement.

Cohen did this before. He built Chewy from a pet food startup into a company that PetSmart acquired for $3.35 billion and that now trades at a $13 billion market cap. He sees something in the eBay-GameStop combination that Wall Street doesn't, and he's been right before when the consensus said he was crazy.

The physical-plus-digital thesis isn't absurd. Authentication and fulfillment are real pain points on eBay, and GameStop's store footprint could address them. If Cohen secures better financing (a binding commitment without the credit rating condition, or a strategic co-investor), the offer looks very different.

There's also the retail investor wildcard. GameStop still has one of the most engaged shareholder bases in the market. If Cohen takes the offer directly to eBay shareholders at a genuine premium with credible funding, it puts real pressure on the board. Boards don't always get the final say in M&A.

And eBay's own shareholders might be more receptive than the board lets on. $125 per share is a 46% premium. If you're an eBay shareholder who's been underwater or flat for years, that's a real number.

Does Cohen come back with a revised offer? Better financing terms or a strategic partner (a private equity firm, a sovereign wealth fund) would change the conversation entirely.

Does Cohen launch a proxy fight? Replacing enough eBay board members to force a deal could take a year or more and cost a lot of money, but it's on the table.

Does eBay's stock drift back down? If eBay trades back toward pre-bid levels, Cohen's premium looks even more attractive to shareholders, and the board's rejection starts to look like it's leaving money on the table.

Does someone else bid? A rejected $56 billion offer puts eBay "in play." Private equity firms and strategic acquirers may now be running their own numbers.

This saga has everything: a meme stock CEO with a chip on his shoulder, a legacy marketplace that just posted its best quarter in five years, a financing structure that makes credit analysts nervous, and the guy from The Big Short heading for the exit.

We don't know how it ends… but we know it's not over! We’ll keep you updated.

That’s all for today’s special edition. We hope you got value from it. Reply and let us know if you did. 

Until tomorrow,

— Brandon & Blake