Ebay buys Depop for $1.2bn in bid to capture younger shoppers | eBay

The online seller eBay has agreed to purchase the secondhand fashion marketplace Depop from Etsy for about $1.2bn in cash, the companies announced on Wednesday, with eBay hoping the acquisition will help it capture a younger demographic.

Used clothing has become increasingly popular, with Gen Z shoppers searching for unique items that cost less than new ones, and who want to keep older items from heading to landfill.

Depop, based in London, is expected to retain its name, brand, platform and its culture, the companies said. It was founded in 2011.

“We are confident that as part of eBay, Depop will be even more well positioned for long-term growth, benefiting from our scale, complementary offerings, and operational capabilities,” eBay’s chief executive, Jamie Ianonne, said.

As of 31 December 2025, Depop’s marketplace had 7 million active buyers, nearly 90% of whom were under the age of 34, and more than 3 million active sellers, the joint release said.

Etsy bought Depop for $1.6bn in 2021. At the time, Etsy was trying to build a “House of Brands”, and acquired a string of online marketplaces in a bid to take on bigger players, like Amazon.

Etsy has since reversed course, selling off marketplaces beyond its central platform. Selling Depop “allows us to focus exclusively on the compelling opportunity we see in front of us”, Etsy’s chief executive, Kruti Patel Goyal, said on Wednesday, and “to grow the Etsy marketplace in ways that matter most to our buyers and sellers”.

Ebay, based in San Jose, California, said it intends to pay cash. Etsy, based in Brooklyn, New York, plans to utilise the proceeds for general corporate purposes, according to the release.

The transaction, which has been unanimously approved by the boards of eBay and Etsy, is expected to close in the second quarter, the companies said.

EBay’s shares rose more than 7%, while Etsy soared close to 15% in after-hours trading when the news was announced.