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GameStop recently turned plenty of heads when it proposed a potential purchase of eBay that would cost around $55 billion. However, the company’s CEO failed to answer a question involving some incredibly basic math when he chatted with CNBC during an interview where he had trouble explaining how his company could actually afford to buy the auction giant.
It’s hard to believe it’s been more than five years since GameStop ended up at the center of the saga that pitted the internet against the short-sellers on Wall Street who were angling to profit from what they believed to be an inevitable demise.
The retailer’s stock was trading at less than $5 per share at the start of January 2021. However, day traders on Reddit began to rally around the company after a user named Keith Gill asserted it was undervalued, and shares spiked as high as $483 during a roller coaster ride where other struggling companies, including AMC and Blackberry, also got a similar treatment.
A number of hedge funds that were impacted by the buying frenzy suffered serious losses, and while the hype eventually died down, GameStop was still able to take advantage of the influx of cash; the company’s market cap was hovering around $1 billion before the rally, but it’s currently north of $10 billion.
Ryan Cohen has served as its CEO since 2023 and joined its board amidst the initial surge, and he has some serious incentive to keep the stock price as high as possible due to a compensation package that’s exclusively linked to its performance.
He’s been an instrumental figure in the company’s attempt to transition from brick-and-mortar stores to e-commerce, and he has set his sights on a massive online marketplace despite evidence that suggests he can’t afford it.
GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen failed to explain how the company can afford to buy eBay during an awkward interview with CNBC
On Sunday, GameStop unexpectedly revealed a proposal to purchase eBay for $125 a share in a deal that would require the former to shell out around $55.5 billion to acquire the auction website, asserting it “will deliver $2 billion of annualized cost reductions within twelve months of closing” the deal and use its preexisting stores to create a “national network for authentication, intake, fulfilment, and live commerce.”
It seemed like a very bold move when you consider there is no evidence that suggests GameStop has close to the amount of money it would need to acquire what is an objectively bigger company by most metrics, and on Monday, Cohen had the chance to expand on the plan during an interview on Squawk Box on CNBC.
Andrew Ross Sorkin pressed Cohen about the elephant in the room while noting GameStop really only has $20 billion at its disposal when you add its market cap to the $9 billion in cash it has on hand.
He acknowledged TD Securities had tentatively pledged another $20 billion, but things got a little weird when the CEO repeatedly failed to adequately explain where he’d come up with an additional $16 billion, coyly stating, “We will see what happens.”
Here’s the most contentious part of Ryan Cohen’s CNBC Squawk Box interview about the GameStop-EBAY acquisition.
This is a HEATED back and forth, uncommon for financial news. $GME
Sorkin, at one point is in disbelief at RC’s repetitive answering to his question. pic.twitter.com/MWAbYWStlp
— Reese Politics (@ReesePolitics) May 4, 2026
There is always a chance GameStop plans to court other outside investors, but the interview failed to inspire much confidence when you consider its stock has fallen around 8% as of this writing since the markets opened on Monday.