Ryan Cohen, the man who led the revival of GameStop, has bet on Bitcoin.

Original author: Thejaswini M A

Compiled by: White55, Mars Finance

Ryan Cohen has done it again, acting unilaterally without warning, explanation, or seeking permission.

On a Tuesday in May 2025, in a routine disclosure in a document from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that was overlooked by most investors, a few words quietly appeared in GameStop's 8-K form: "Purchased a total of 4,710 Bitcoins."

The CEO who once led a video game retailer on the brink of bankruptcy to revival has just invested over $500 million of the company's cash into Bitcoin. No press release, no investor conference call, just the bare minimum disclosure required by law.

When David Bailey from BTC Inc posed the question everyone was asking to Cohen, Cohen's response shattered months of speculation.

"Did GameStop buy Bitcoin?"

"Yes. We currently have 4,710 bitcoins."

In this way, Cohen, with his usual "understatement", turned GameStop into the 14th largest holder of Bitcoin in the world - just like his style when he built Chewy from scratch into a $3.35 billion unicorn.

Anyone who pays attention to him would not be surprised. It is this person's involvement that has inspired millions of retail investors to short some of Wall Street's most established hedge funds. He turned a company that many so-called experts believed was destined to fail into a company that disrupts all traditional valuation models.

Cohen went from being a college dropout selling pet food online to becoming a creator of new business strategies. His journey began as a teenager in Florida, who understood that the best opportunities are hidden in places where others have given up.

From dropout teenager to business disruptor

Ryan Cohen's entrepreneurial journey began long before he reached the legal driving age.

Cohen was born in 1986 in Montreal, his mother was a teacher, and his father Ted Cohen ran a glassware import company. When he was young, the family moved to Coral Springs, Florida. At the age of 15, Cohen started his own business, earning referral fees from various e-commerce websites.

By the age of 16, his business scope had expanded from simple referrals to more organized e-commerce operations, and while most people still thought of the internet as just a passing fad, he had a deep understanding of the essence of e-commerce.

His father Ted became his most important mentor, teaching him the importance of delayed gratification, work ethic, and viewing business relationships as long-term partnerships. Ultimately, Cohen decided to drop out of the University of Florida and fully commit to business. He has proven himself capable of acquiring clients and generating revenue; for him, college was just a detour from his mission.

Pet Food Revolution

The e-commerce field in 2011 was dominated by Amazon, and most entrepreneurs avoided its prominence, but 25-year-old Cohen chose "competition without direct competition."

Cohen did not attempt to outdo Amazon in product selection or logistics, but instead found an area where customer relationships are more important than operational efficiency: pet supplies. Pet owners care about "family members," not just purchasing products. They need advice, empathy, and an understanding that "a pet being sick is not just a hassle, but a crisis."

Chewy's core philosophy is simple: to combine Amazon's logistics with Zappos' customer service philosophy to create a tailored experience for pet owners. The company sells pet products online, but more importantly, it aims to establish a connection with customers that goes beyond individual transactions.

The early execution process was orderly and customer-centric. Chewy's customer service team not only handles orders but also sends handwritten holiday cards, creates custom pet portraits for loyal customers, and sends flowers when beloved pets pass away. These services require money and are difficult to scale. Here is a widely circulated tweet:

But establishing an emotional connection did not bring rewards. In the first two years, Cohen faced a problem significant enough to shut down most startups: no one was willing to invest in a pet food company competing with Amazon.

One hundred rejections

Pitching events are a kind of torment for entrepreneurs. Between 2011 and 2013, Cohen contacted over 100 venture capital firms, explaining why pet products represented a huge opportunity for a customer-centric company. What most VCs saw was: a company founded by college dropouts without any traditional business experience trying to carve out a share in a small market dominated by unbeatable competitors.

The turning point didn't come until 2013, when Volition Capital provided $15 million in Series A funding. This funding allowed Cohen to scale up Chewy's operations while maintaining its customer-centric corporate culture. By 2016, the company had received investments from BlackRock and the PNC Group, with annual sales reaching $900 million.

Chewy has a very high customer retention rate, their average order value continues to increase, and most importantly, customers become advocates who recommend the service to other pet owners.

By 2018, Chewy's annual revenue had reached $3.5 billion and was preparing for an IPO. At that time, PetSmart made a $3.35 billion acquisition offer to Chewy, which was the largest acquisition in e-commerce history at that time. 31-year-old Cohen, worth hundreds of millions, chose to leave Chewy and return to his family.

Family halftime

In 2018, Ryan Cohen, at the peak of his career, made a decision that puzzled the business world.

He stepped down as CEO of Chewy to be with his pregnant wife and prepare for fatherhood. He said a complete goodbye to the company he built over seven years. Cohen has achieved financial independence and plans to use this freedom to enjoy the most important moments in his personal life.

He sold most of his shares in Chewy to focus on being a good husband and father. For someone who has been focused on growth and competition since his teenage years, transitioning to family life may feel uncomfortable. However, Cohen has fully embraced it.

Even during this period focused on family, he remains an active investor. His portfolio includes Apple Inc. (he holds 1.55 million shares, becoming one of the largest individual shareholders), Wells Fargo, and other blue-chip companies.

The family foundation he co-founded with his wife, Stephanie, supports education, animal welfare, and other charitable causes.

This break lasted for three years until he discovered GameStop.

GameStop Gamble

In September 2020, when most investors believed that GameStop was a failing brick-and-mortar retailer being suffocated by digital downloads and streaming services, Ryan Cohen saw something different: it was a company with strong brand recognition and a loyal customer base, but the management did not know how to leverage these two assets.

Cohen's investment firm RC Ventures disclosed that it holds nearly 10% of the shares in this struggling video game retailer, making it the company's largest shareholder. This move has puzzled Wall Street analysts, who cannot understand why someone as experienced as Cohen would invest in an 'outdated' retail business.

Cohen believes that GameStop is not just a retail chain, but also a cultural landmark of the gaming community. Customers are enthusiasts who love gaming culture, collectibles, and social experiences, willing to pay a premium for emotional connections.

The problem is that the management views the company as a traditional retailer rather than a community-driven platform.

In January 2021, Cohen joined the GameStop board, a move that triggered a frenzy of buying by retail investors. Within two weeks, GameStop's stock price soared by 1500%, creating one of the most famous short squeezes in market history.

As financial media focus on the phenomenon of "meme stocks" and the clash between retail investors and hedge funds, Cohen is paying attention to more fundamental changes.

Cohen's way of rebuilding GameStop is the same as how he founded Chewy.

When he took over, "the company was a mess and suffering heavy losses."

He first cut the leadership team. Ten board members left, replaced by executives from Amazon and Chewy who truly understand e-commerce. If you want to compete in the digital space, you need experienced talent.

Next is cost reduction. Cohen comprehensively eliminated inefficiencies: redundant positions, underperforming stores, and expensive consulting fees, while retaining all parts that are closely related to customers. The goal is to remain profitable even if sales decline.

Let's take a look at the specific data changes before and after Cohen took over GameStop:

Cohen took over a company with a revenue of $5.1 billion and an annual loss of over $200 million. After three years of systematic restructuring, in 2023-2024, he successfully led GameStop to achieve profitability for the first time. Despite a 25% revenue decline due to store closures, he still increased the gross margin by 440 basis points and turned an annual loss of $215 million into a profit of $131 million. This proves that smaller companies can also generate significant profits.

His bet is on digital transformation. Brick-and-mortar stores will survive, but only the best will make it. GameStop's future is online, serving gamers who want more than just video games – collectibles, trading cards, merchandise, anything related to gaming culture. Cohen has also stockpiled cash and gained the authority to make strategic investments. On September 28, 2023, he assumed the role of CEO while continuing as chairman. His salary is zero. His compensation is entirely tied to the stock price, meaning he will only be rewarded when shareholders profit.

Then there is cryptocurrency staking.

GameStop's first foray into the cryptocurrency asset space reflects the prospects and risks of emerging technology applications.

In July 2022, the company launched an NFT marketplace focused on game-related digital collectibles. The initial results look promising: over $3.5 million in trading volume within the first 48 hours indicates a real demand for game NFTs.

But the collapse of the NFT market came quickly and brutally. Sales plummeted from $77.4 million in 2022 to just $2.8 million in 2023. GameStop halted its crypto wallet service in November 2023, citing "regulatory uncertainty in the crypto space," and closed its NFT trading feature in February 2024.

This failure could have completely ended GameStop's cryptocurrency business. However, Cohen learned from it and developed a more mature digital asset strategy.

Bet on Bitcoin

May 28, 2025. While the market was obsessed with Federal Reserve policies, GameStop quietly purchased 4,710 bitcoins, worth $513 million.

Cohen's reasoning is as rigorous as ever:

If this argument is correct, then Bitcoin and gold can serve as tools to hedge against global currency depreciation and systemic risks. Compared to gold, Bitcoin has certain unique advantages: portability, as it can be transferred instantly worldwide, while gold is bulky and has very high transportation costs. Its authenticity can be instantly verified through the blockchain. You can easily and securely store Bitcoin in a wallet, while gold requires insurance, which is very costly. There is also the factor of scarcity; Bitcoin's supply is fixed, whereas for gold, technological advancements mean the supply remains uncertain.

This move makes GameStop the 14th largest Bitcoin corporate holder.

The company funds its Bitcoin purchases through convertible bonds rather than core capital, while still maintaining a strong cash reserve of over $4 billion. This strategy reflects a diversified and prudent approach, rather than a high-stakes gamble: positioning Bitcoin as a secondary bet rather than a core business.

"GameStop follows its own strategy; we do not follow anyone else's strategy."

After the news was announced, GameStop's stock price fell, but Cohen seemed unconcerned.

On June 25, GameStop raised an additional $450 million by exercising its over-allotment option, bringing the total amount of its convertible bond issuance to $2.7 billion.

The over-allotment option is a clause in the underwriting agreement that allows underwriters to issue up to 15% more shares than originally planned in the case of strong demand. Exercising this option gives the company an opportunity to raise more capital while also helping to stabilize the stock price after issuance. For GameStop, this means issuing more convertible bonds to increase the total amount of funds raised.

The funds will be used for "general corporate purposes and to invest in a manner consistent with GameStop's investment policy," which explicitly includes the purchase of Bitcoin as a reserve asset.

Cohen has a "Meme Army." The most unusual part of Cohen's GameStop story is the millions of retail investors who refused to sell.

They call themselves "monkeys", and their behavior is completely different from that of ordinary stock investors. They do not trade based on earnings reports or analyst ratings. They hold stocks because they believe in Cohen's vision and want to see what happens in the future.

This is "patient capital," which is almost unseen in the public market. Cohen can focus on long-term strategies without worrying about quarterly fluctuations, as his core group of investors will not easily leave.