Benzinga | Jun 25, 2021 05:16AM EDT

eBay Announced it Completed Transfer of Classifieds Business to Adevinta for $2.5B in Cash and 44% Stake Advenita

eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY) today announced that it has completed the transfer of its Classifieds business to Adevinta in exchange for $2.5 billion in cash and a 44% equity stake in Adevinta, equivalent to approximately 540 million shares.

"We are pleased to finalize the deal between Adevinta and eBay Classifieds, where the combination of these two companies will create a leading global online classifieds business," said Jamie Iannone, Chief Executive Officer, eBay. "By joining Adevinta, the eBay Classifieds' business has an enormous opportunity ahead. We are optimistic that the breadth of talent and collective experience across the combined portfolio will offer additional value for our customers, employees and shareholders."

The completion of this transaction results in after tax net cash proceeds of approximately$2 billion. With this transfer complete, the Company is updating its capital allocation plans for 2021 by increasing its estimated share buyback from $2.0 billion to $5.0 billion.

The Company has agreed to reduce its ownership stake in Adevinta to 33% or less over the next 18 months, as part of remedies it proposed to resolve the competition concerns raised by the Austrian regulatory authorities. Proceeds from this reduction will be deployed in a manner consistent with eBay's capital allocation tenets and targets.

Please reference the 8-K eBay filed today for further information.