eBay vs JD.com: Founders, CEOs and History
eBay was founded in 1995 by Pierre Omidyar and is led by Jamie Iannone. JD.com was founded in 1998 by Richard Liu Qiangdong and is led by Sandy Xu Ran.
Company facts
Founders
eBay
Pierre Omidyar
eBay possesses one of the most famous, founding stories in the history of the early dot-com boom, rooted in the chaotic, unproven nature of the early commercial internet.
JD.com
Richard Liu Qiangdong
Richard Liu Qiangdong founded JD.com in Beijing in June 1998 as Jingdong, a small counter in the Zhongguancun electronics market selling magneto-optical drives. He built a reputation for genuine products in a market known for fakes.
CEOs and their tenures
eBay
- Meg Whitman1998–2008
Former President and CEO
Whitman's decade of leadership is widely regarded as the golden era of the company's expansion.
Source - John Donahoe2008–2015
President and CEO
Donahoe repositioned eBay around mobile and omnichannel commerce and completed the PayPal separation in July 2015, creating two independent public companies.
Source - Devin Wenig2015–2019
President and CEO
Under Wenig eBay concentrated on its marketplace and sold StubHub in 2019. He left the company in 2019 and Jamie Iannone later became chief executive.
Source - Jamie Iannone2020–present
Chief Executive Officer
Iannone's strategic vision provided much-needed focus and discipline, stabilizing the company's market position.
Source
JD.com
- Richard Liu1998–2022
Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
He built JD.com around its own logistics network and listed it on Nasdaq in 2014. He handed the chief executive role to Xu Lei in April 2022 and remained chairman.
Source - Xu Lei2022–2023
CEO
Xu played a critical role in establishing the '618' mid-year shopping festival into China's second-largest nationwide retail event.
Source - Sandy Xu Ran2023–present
CEO
A former PwC audit partner who joined JD as CFO in 2018, Xu has run JD with a focus on cost discipline and shareholder returns, while backing big new bets in food delivery and Europe.
Source
Timeline: eBay and JD.com side by side
1995eBay
AuctionWeb Founded
Pierre Omidyar launches the online auction site that becomes eBay.
1998eBay
IPO
eBay goes public as online auctions become mainstream internet commerce.
1998eBay
Meg Whitman becomes CEO
Meg Whitman became CEO of eBay in 1998. Whitman's decade of leadership is widely regarded as the golden era of the company's expansion.
1998JD.com
Richard Liu Qiangdong founds Jingdong Century in a 4-square-meter stall in Beijing's Zhongguancun.
2002eBay
PayPal Acquisition
eBay acquires PayPal, strengthening online payments for marketplace transactions.
2003JD.com
SARS epidemic closes physical shops; Liu begins selling electronic components online.
2004JD.com
Permanently shuts physical retail stalls to launch e-commerce website jdlaser.com.
2005eBay
Acquired Skype
eBay acquired Skype for $2.6 billion. eBay acquired the internet telephony company Skype for $2.6 billion in a controversial deal intended to integrate voice communication into the marketplace, based on the flawed assumption that buyers and sellers wanted to n…
2007eBay
Acquired StubHub
eBay acquired StubHub for $315 million. eBay acquired the online ticketing platform StubHub for $315 million to gain a dominant position in the secondary market for live event tickets, a high-margin, high-frequency category that complemented the company's core…
2007JD.com
Raises $10 million from Capital Today; takes radical strategic decision to build in-house JD Logistics.
2008eBay
John Donahoe Becomes CEO
John Donahoe succeeded Meg Whitman as eBay chief executive in 2008.
2010JD.com
Launches the 618 Mid-Year Shopping Festival, transforming it into a nationwide commercial event.
2011eBay
GSI Commerce Acquired
eBay bought the e-commerce services company GSI Commerce in 2011 for about $2.4 billion.
2014JD.com
Lists on NASDAQ (JD), raising about $1.78 billion, after Tencent takes a strategic stake and links JD to WeChat.
2015eBay
PayPal Spin-Off
PayPal separates from eBay, leaving eBay focused on the core marketplace.
2016JD.com
Forms strategic alliance with Walmart, taking over Yihaodian in exchange for JD shares.
2020eBay
Jamie Iannone Becomes CEO
Iannone begins a strategy centered on focus categories and marketplace quality.
2020JD.com
Completes secondary listing on Hong Kong Stock Exchange (9618); spins off JD Health in $3.5B IPO.
2021JD.com
JD Logistics completes separate $3.2 billion IPO on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (2618).
2022JD.com
JD Logistics acquires a controlling stake in Deppon Logistics; Xu Lei becomes CEO as Richard Liu stays Chairman.
2023JD.com
CFO Sandy Xu Ran becomes CEO in May 2023.
2024JD.com
Walmart sells its entire JD.com stake in August 2024.
2025eBay
FY2025 Marketplace Scale
eBay reports $11.100B revenue, 135M active buyers, and nearly $80B GMV.
2025JD.com
Launches JD Food Delivery; makes a tender offer for Ceconomy (MediaMarkt, Saturn); revenue reaches ~$182 billion (RMB1,309.1 billion).
2026eBay
Depop Acquisition Closes
eBay completes its roughly $1.2B cash purchase of Depop from Etsy, adding a Gen Z and Millennial fashion resale marketplace.
2026JD.com
Q2 revenue falls 2.9% while non-GAAP profit rises 20.8%; Ceconomy deal wins conditional German approval.
Acquisitions
JD.com
- Ceconomy AG2025Undisclosed
- Deppon Logistics2022$1.4B
- China Logistics Property Holdings (CNLP)2022Undisclosed
- Yihaodian2016Undisclosed
Questions about eBay vs JD.com
Who is the CEO of eBay Inc. and JD.com?
eBay Inc. is led by Jamie Iannone and JD.com is led by Sandy Xu Ran. Both serve as the top executive responsible for the company's strategy, operations, and financial performance.
When was eBay Inc. founded vs JD.com?
eBay Inc. was founded in 1995 — 3 years before JD.com, which was founded in 1998. eBay Inc.'s longer operating history gives it a deeper track record but also potentially more institutional inertia compared to the younger JD.com.
How many employees does eBay Inc. have compared to JD.com?
eBay Inc. employs approximately 12,300 people, while JD.com employs approximately 776,682. JD.com has the larger workforce at 776,682 employees, compared to eBay Inc.'s 12,300. A higher headcount does not necessarily imply greater efficiency — it often reflects differences in business model (e.g., manufacturing vs. software).
Where are eBay Inc. and JD.com headquartered?
eBay Inc. is headquartered in United States and JD.com is headquartered in China. Their different home markets mean they may face different regulatory frameworks, tax regimes, and currency exposure.
Who founded eBay Inc. and JD.com?
eBay Inc. was founded by Pierre Omidyar. JD.com was founded by Richard Liu Qiangdong.
Which company has a longer operating history — eBay Inc. or JD.com?
eBay Inc. has been operating for approximately 31 years, making it the more established of the two companies. JD.com has been in operation for around 28 years. A longer operating history often signals greater institutional resilience and brand recognition, though it can also mean slower adaptation to new market conditions.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the eBay vs JD.com overview