GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen Could Score a $35 Billion Payday — If the Company Pulls Off a Massive Turnaround

GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen could be in line for a staggering $35 billion payday, but only if the video game retailer delivers an extraordinary financial turnaround.

According to a filing announced Wednesday, GameStop’s board approved a performance-based compensation package that would grant Cohen stock options worth up to $35 billion. However, the payout comes with strict conditions. Cohen would only receive the compensation if GameStop’s market capitalization reaches $100 billion — roughly ten times its current valuation — and if the company generates $10 billion in cumulative earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.

The company emphasized that Cohen’s compensation includes no guaranteed salary, no cash bonuses and no time-based stock awards. Instead, his entire pay package is considered “at-risk,” meaning he is only rewarded if GameStop achieves significant market and operational milestones.

The structure mirrors high-profile executive compensation plans seen elsewhere in the tech and business world, including Elon Musk’s controversial pay package at Tesla, which similarly ties compensation to aggressive performance targets.

GameStop has experienced dramatic highs and lows since Cohen took over as CEO in 2021. The retailer became the face of the meme stock phenomenon that year, when retail investors drove seemingly unstoppable surges in the company’s share price, at one point soaring by as much as 2,000%. The frenzy returned briefly in 2024 after renewed online enthusiasm from influential meme stock traders.

Despite those bursts of investor excitement, GameStop has struggled with long-term challenges. The company has closed hundreds of stores as consumer habits shift toward digital game purchases. As part of its broader transformation strategy, GameStop has also invested heavily in cryptocurrencies.

In 2021, GameStop’s market value stood at roughly $1.3 billion. Today, it sits closer to $9.3 billion — a significant increase, but still far from the $100 billion mark required for Cohen’s payout.

Whether the ambitious compensation plan proves visionary or unrealistic will depend on whether GameStop can successfully reinvent itself in an increasingly digital gaming economy.

Credit: CNN Newsource

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