Ryan Cohen, the founder of Chewy and a CEO beloved by the internet, is a billionaire due in part to his investments, including GameStop. What is his net worth in 2022? He is worth $2 billion, according to Forbes.
Cohen spent about $76 million buying a 13% stake in GameStop at the end of 2020, according to Forbes. At the same time, he urged GameStop leaders to restructure the store to make it successful again. He joined the GameStop board in January 2021, at the same time as Reddit traders spurred a huge surge in the stock price.
Among the Reddit traders was Keith Gill, better known as Roaring Kitty on YouTube and DeepF******Value on Reddit. Read more about Gill here.
While Gill was internet famous in the world of retail traders, Redditors and YouTubers, his name was not widely known until he helped to stoke a trading frenzy as day traders on Robinhood invested in shorted stocks that hedge fund managers expected would turn massive profits. Instead, retail traders, thanks in part to Roaring Kitty, saw their investments shoot up to the moon as Gill encouraged Robinhood investors to buy stock in the floundering company.
The story of the GameStop trading frenzy became a three-part documentary launched on Netflix September 28, 2022: “Eat the Rich: The GameStop Saga.”
Here’s what you need to know:
Cohen Sold Chewy to His Competitor, PetSmart, for $3.35 Billion
Cohen founded Chewy in 2011, and six years later, he sold the company to PetSmart, his former competitor, for $3.35 billion in 2017, according to Forbes. Chewy is an online pet supply store.
“Cohen grew the business to $3.5 billion in annual revenues and stepped down in 2018 after selling it to PetSmart for $3.4 billion in 2017,” Forbes reported.
According to Markets Insider, Cohen leads a very private life, but information on his venture capital firm is public.
“While not much is known about the personal life of Cohen — like his wife’s name, and even his age is disputed — we do know what his venture capital firm, RC Ventures is doing,” Markets Insider reported in June 2022.
Cohen’s Net Worth Climbed By About $500 Million in the Last Year
Cohen’s wealth did not stop increasing after selling Chewy and after he gained a fortune on GameStop stocks. Forbes reported that his net worth climbed by about $500 million between 2021 and today, increasing from about $1.6 billion to about $2.1 billion.
He turned a huge investment in GameStop stock options in 2019 after selling Chewy two years earlier.
“At the end of 2020, Cohen spent about $76 million buying a 13% stake in GameStop while urging management to restructure the ailing brick-and-mortar,” Forbes reported. “He joined GameStop’s board in January 2021 and his fortune surged that month after Reddit traders coordinated a massive surge in the stock’s price.”
Forbes lists Cohen as a self-made billionaire. One of his parents worked as a teacher, and the other worked as a glassware importer. Cohen started his first business at age 15. In that business, he collected referral fees from e-commerce websites, according to Forbes. Cohen is a Canadian native who now lives in Bal Harbour, Florida. He is married, and he is 37 years old.
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