eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY) is an online marketplace founded in 1995 that connects independent sellers, small businesses, and brands with buyers worldwide. It operates as a 📝two-sided marketplace for new and used goods sold through auction and fixed-price listings, with collectibles, trading cards, motor parts, refurbished electronics, and pre-owned fashion among its focus categories. In 2025 it handled $79.6 billion in gross merchandise volume.
Pierre Omidyar launched the site as AuctionWeb in September 1995, renamed it eBay in 1997, and took it public in 1998. The company acquired 📝PayPal in 2002 and spun it off as a separate public company in 2015; it also owned Skype from 2005 to 2009 and later sold StubHub and its classifieds business to concentrate on the core marketplace. Under CEO Jamie Iannone, eBay has positioned itself around enthusiast categories and recommerce rather than competing with 📝Amazon on everyday retail, adding authentication services and managed payments. In July 2026 it closed its roughly $1.4 billion acquisition of the resale app Depop from Etsy, and in May 2026 it rejected an unsolicited takeover proposal from GameStop. It reported 136 million active buyers in the second quarter of 2026.