PayPal has offered to buy Pinterest for USD 45 billion, people familiar with the matter told Reuters. This would be the biggest acquisition of a social media company, surpassing Microsoft's USD 26.2 billion purchase of LinkedIn in 2016.
The deal seeks to bring together e-commerce and social media, as more and more people shop online and take purchasing tips from influencers. Acquiring Pinterest would allow PayPal to capture more of that e-commerce growth and diversify its income though advertising revenue.
PayPal has offered USD 70 per share, mostly in stock, for Pinterest, one of the sources said. The company hopes to successfully negotiate and announce a deal by the time it reports quarterly earnings on 08 November, the report said.
PayPal and Pinterest did not respond to requests for comment. Bloomberg News first reported on the companies' talks on 20 October.
Pinterest shares jumped 12.8 percent on the news to USD 62.68.
