GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen Lists Items On eBay After Buyout Offer

GameStop and Ryan Cohen have turned the proposed eBay takeover into an even stranger story, with auction listings, a suspension claim, and more unanswered financing questions.

Good to Know

• GameStop announced a roughly $56 billion cash-and-stock offer for eBay on May 3.
• Ryan Cohen later wrote on X: “I’m selling stuff on eBay to pay for eBay.”
• Cohen claimed eBay suspended his account, though the account later appeared viewable again.

Ryan Cohen Turns eBay Bid Into An Auction Story

Ryan Cohen has added another odd chapter to the GameStop offer for eBay.

The GameStop CEO posted on X on May 6 that he was selling items on eBay “to pay for eBay.” The listings included games, gaming merchandise, sports cards, a GameStop mousepad, and a Halo 2 Master Chief statue. Some bids climbed fast, with the mousepad reportedly at $1,525 and the Halo item near $14,000.

That would not come close to funding the deal, of course. GameStop said on May 3 that it wanted to buy eBay in a half-cash, half-stock offer worth roughly $56 billion. The main issue remains simple: GameStop has not clearly shown how it would fund such a purchase.

Cohen also gave little clarity during a CNBC interview. Asked where the money would come from, he said he did not understand the “pretty straightforward question” and then avoided a direct answer.

Then came the eBay twist. After Cohen promoted the listings, he claimed the platform had suspended his account. The notice he shared said the account had been permanently suspended because activity was “putting the eBay community at risk.” It also said listings had been removed.

The account did not appear to stay offline for long. Less than 12 hours later, the profile was viewable again, with many listings still available.

That leaves the takeover offer surrounded by doubt, jokes, and market chatter. Some observers have called it a stunt, especially after the CNBC exchange and the auction post. If the goal involved lifting GameStop shares, that would raise serious legal questions, and the share reaction has not made the plan look effective anyway.

For now, GameStop still has a proposed eBay bid, Cohen still has unanswered funding questions, and the auction stunt has made the whole thing even harder to take at face value.