Co-Founder, Chewy
Search every verified Ryan Cohen interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. Ryan Cohen, CEO of GameStop, has been publicly pursuing an unsolicited $56 billion bid to acquire eBay, which eBay rejected as "neither credible nor attractive." In multiple interviews, Cohen stated that he is committed to the acquisition "one way or another" and said he is working with bankers and advisors. He argued that the media has failed to explain why the deal makes sense, citing his track record with Chewy and GameStop, his plan to invest $500 million of his own money, and his identification of high-margin growth opportunities in live commerce and in-game digital marketplaces. Cohen said he would go directly to eBay shareholders, stating that the "fate of the business is going to be decided by the owners of the business." Cohen has also discussed GameStop's financial turnaround under his leadership, noting that the company was losing hundreds of millions of dollars per quarter when he joined the board and is now profitable, with SG&A reduced by $800 million. He has emphasized that he has not taken a salary or compensation from GameStop and that his investment comes from buying shares on the open market. Cohen has criticized what he described as an "entrenched" management team at eBay, claiming the CEO makes nearly $30 million annually without buying stock, and has committed to cutting $2 billion in costs at eBay within the first year if the acquisition proceeds.
“There has been a complete failure by the media to explain why this transaction makes sense. And so, number one, my track record, Chewy and GameStop, it speaks for themselves. my alignment with shareholders. I'm putting $500 million of my own money into this transaction. The high margin growth opportunities for this bus...”
“I'm not going to call my shots, but we're coming for eBay one way or another.”
“I have a lot of admiration for the retail shareholders that underwrote the investment based on my precedence and based on my alignment with shareholders in general because I haven't got paid. I just, you know, I haven't taken a dollar of compensation out of the company. Um, and my investment comes from buying shares in...”
“I think it has to do with just a level of entrenchment in the fact that the highest paid employees who are serial delegators and aren't actually hands on keyboard doing any work um you know are they really have no utility and comes down to the the people that I leverage are the people on the ground that are typically t...”
“I am going to make sure that eBay is going to [__] win. Basically it's that simple. It's going to [__] win. Like, it's going to be a very strong business. And I'm going to get rid of the [__] And I've got everything on the line. Not cuz I have to, cuz I want to, because I believe in the company. I believe in the potent...”
“The people that are doing the most work are the people who are the least paid. And then you've got middle management which are basically delegators. And then you have all the fancy titles from the directors and the VPs and the C's. And essentially what they're best at is PowerPoint presentations, public speaking, they'...”
“Everyone hates GameStop and it seems like everyone in the media basically wants us to fail and wants them to succeed and you've got a board that's making hundreds of thousands of dollars a year. They don't buy stock with their own money. They end up showing up to a handful of board meetings and they're making a fortune...”
“I would extend that into digital collectibles. And essentially, if you look at all of these in-game items, AAA titles that people are accumulating, skins, weapons, all of these things, taking eBay and building a marketplace where you can provide liquidity for in-game digital items. Essentially, it's what NFTs could hav...”
“Ultimately the owners of the business are the shareholders and the fate of the business is going to be decided by the owners of the business and the vote is going to come down to who they want running the business. Do you want an entrenched management team that's collecting tens of millions of dollars in risk-free comp...”
“What I find interesting on all the skeptics on Wall Street is how quickly they are to take the side of the establishment. I don't know what it is. Maybe they play by the rules. They go on the show. They answer all their questions. They bow down to them. They get together in the Hamptons. I don't know what it is, but th...”
“Ultimately, the owners of the business are the shareholders and the fate of the business is going to be decided by the owners of the business and the vote is going to come down to who they want running the business. Do you want an entrenched management team that's collecting tens of millions of dollars in risk-free com...”
“What I find interesting on all the skeptics on Wall Street is how quickly they are to take the side of the establishment. I don't know what it is. Maybe they play by the rules, they go on the show, they answer all their questions, they bow down to them, they get together in the Hamptons. I don't know what it is, but th...”
(0:00) David Friedberg intros GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen! (1:56) Building and selling Chewy for $3.35B, how to compete with ...
GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen discusses the company’s bid to acquire eBay, financing support for the plan, and how he sees the deal benefitting shareholders. Cohen tells Ed Ludlow, “eBay is a platform that I can build into something much more profitable and much larger.” He also speaks about discless video games and whether or not he would raise his bid for eBay. -------- Like this video? Subscribe to Bloomberg Technology on YouTube: / @bloombergtech Watch the latest full episodes of "Bloomberg Technology" with Caroline Hyde and Ed Ludlow here: • 'Bloomberg Tech' With Ed Ludlow Full…
GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen says he would go directly to shareholders with his bid to buy eBay while speaking with Bloomberg News' Ed Ludlow on Bloomberg Tech. Following his comments, eBay's stocks fell to a session low. Cohen also spoke about GameStop's financial turnaround under his leadership. See omnystudio.com/listener (https://omnystudio.com/listener) for privacy information. Bloomberg Talks curates top interviews from around Bloomberg News. Hear conversations with the biggest names in finance, politics and entertainment. On Bloomberg Talks, we round up interviews with Fortune 500 CEOs, go…
Thanks to Ryan for being on! 00:00 - Intro 00:50 - Ryan's Beginnings in Business 05:50 - Why Pets? 12:20 - Why Enter into Gamestop 15:59 - Gamestop's Future 18:21 - Gamestop's Retail Community 23:10 - Collectibles TAM 26:09 - Why Ebay 30:45 - Ebay's rejection 36:20 - Ebay's Live Studio Play 38:00 - Agentic Commerce 41:08 - Rapid Fire
We sat down with Ryan Cohen, founder of Chewy and CEO/Chairman of GameStop, for a full conversation about business, leadership, GameStop, eBay, sellers, marketplaces, and what it takes to build and improve companies in today’s world. In this interview, we talk with Ryan about his business mindset, what he learned from building Chewy, how he thinks about customer experience, what GameStop has gone through, and why eBay is such an interesting conversation for resellers, entrepreneurs, and online sellers. As longtime eBay sellers and business owners, this was a very special opportunity for us t…
(0:00) David Friedberg intros GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen! (1:56) Building and selling Chewy for $3.35B, how to compete with ...
Watch the full episode here: • "Brink Of DISASTER!" Andrew Ross Sorkin On... In a major business bombshell, GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen confirms to Piers Morgan that he is seriously considering a hostile takeover of eBay. The prospect of an eBay takeover has gathered momentum in recent months. As rumours have intensified, investors and analysts began debating whether a deal was financially viable, setting the stage for one of the most ambitious corporate battles in recent years. Main Channel: / @piersmorganuncensored X: https://x.com/PiersUncensored Instagram: / piersmorganuncensor…
There’s growing concern about the state of the global economy. Warnings about the so-called "AI bubble" and escalating conflict in the Middle East have led a number of commentators and market experts to predict that a major downturn could be on the horizon. Some have even gone further, with one renowned forecaster warning that the world may be heading towards a global depression. With fears of history repeating itself, Piers Morgan is joined by broadcaster and author Andrew Ross Sorkin, whose new book 1929: Inside the Greatest Crash in Wall Street History examines the events that led to the…
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