GameStop has made an unsolicited, non-binding offer to acquire eBay for approximately $55.5 billion—$125 per share, a 20% premium over eBay's last Friday close—funded by a roughly equal split of cash and GameStop common stock, backed by a $20 billion commitment letter from TD Bank.
The Offer Details
Ryan Cohen, GameStop's CEO, communicated to eBay's board that he views the platform as capable of becoming a meaningful rival to Amazon. He also indicated readiness to pursue a proxy fight and take the offer directly to shareholders if the board refuses to engage. GameStop ended fiscal 2025 with nearly $9 billion in total cash and investments, a war chest built through years of cost-cutting and a deliberate pivot into digital assets.
The Bitcoin Connection
Central to GameStop's modernized balance sheet is a bitcoin position of 4,710 BTC, acquired for approximately $500 million during fiscal 2025. Of those coins, 4,709 have been pledged as collateral in a covered-call strategy. The position has since grown to about $519 million and forms part of the balance sheet underpinning the eBay proposal.
This approach mirrors, in spirit if not in scale, the model popularized by Strategy, which holds 818,334 BTC and has used preferred equity issuance to fund aggressive bitcoin accumulation. GameStop's variant is distinct: instead of further accumulating, the company is leveraging its non-traditional balance sheet to pursue an M&A ambition that would have seemed implausible three years ago.
Market Reaction
GameStop shares closed at $26.53 on May 1, up 6.33%, as investors priced in the transformational possibility. eBay's stock surged more than 10% in after-hours trading following the reports. The GME meme coin mirrored the excitement, rising 54% within hours of the news breaking. eBay's board has not yet publicly responded to the proposal.
If completed, the acquisition would transform GameStop from a brick-and-mortar video game retailer into a major e-commerce player. The bitcoin treasury adds a layer of financial innovation, though integration challenges and a potential proxy fight could complicate the deal. Analysts note that GameStop's bold move signals a new era where crypto-backed balance sheets enable mega-mergers.