Devin Wenig

Devin Wenig
Wenig in 2015
Devin Wenig
Born	Devin Norse Wenig 1966
Birthplace	Flatbush, Brooklyn, New York, United States
Nationality	American
Occupation	Business executive
Title	Former CEO, eBay
Known for	President and CEO of eBay (2015–2019); CEO of Thomson Reuters Markets (2008–2011)
Education	Columbia Law School (JD)
Spouse(s)	Cindy Lee Horowitz
Awards	Crain's New York Business 40 Under 40 (2005); Forbes Innovative Leaders list

Devin Norse Wenig (born 1966) is an American business executive who served as president and chief executive officer of eBay Inc. from July 2015 to September 2019. Before leading one of the world's largest online marketplaces, Wenig built his career at the intersection of media, technology, and global commerce, most notably as CEO of Thomson Reuters Markets, the financial and media division of Thomson Reuters Corporation. Born and raised in Flatbush, Brooklyn, Wenig rose through the legal and corporate ranks to oversee multibillion-dollar enterprises and serve on the boards of major corporations including General Motors. His tenure at eBay was marked by efforts to revitalize the platform in an increasingly competitive e-commerce landscape, but his departure in 2019 came amid an activist investor-driven review of the company's operations. Wenig's name subsequently became entangled with one of Silicon Valley's most notorious corporate scandals — a cyberstalking campaign carried out by eBay security employees against the publishers of an online newsletter critical of the company — though Wenig has not been criminally charged and has denied knowledge of the harassment activities.

Early Life

Devin Norse Wenig was born in 1966 in Flatbush, a neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York City. Details regarding his parents and upbringing in Brooklyn remain limited in public records, though his later career trajectory — from a working-class New York neighborhood to the upper echelons of American corporate leadership — became a notable aspect of his professional biography.

Wenig grew up in the New York metropolitan area and pursued his undergraduate education at Union College in Schenectady, New York, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree. He subsequently attended Columbia Law School, one of the top-ranked law schools in the United States, where he earned his Juris Doctor degree. His legal education would serve as the foundation for his early career before he transitioned into corporate management and executive leadership roles in the technology and media industries.

Education

Wenig received his undergraduate degree from Union College, a private liberal arts college in Schenectady, New York. He then obtained his Juris Doctor from Columbia Law School in New York City. The combination of a liberal arts background and legal training shaped Wenig's early professional path, which began in the legal profession before he moved into corporate leadership positions.

Career

Early Career and Reuters

After completing his law degree at Columbia, Wenig began his professional career in the legal field. He eventually transitioned from law into the corporate world, joining Reuters, the international news and financial data company. Over time, Wenig rose through the ranks at Reuters, taking on positions of increasing responsibility within the organization's media and financial information divisions.

Wenig served on the board of Reuters from 2006 to 2011. In 2007, during a period of significant transformation in the media and financial data industries, Wenig discussed the cultural and strategic challenges facing Reuters as it navigated the shift toward digital distribution and open platforms.

Thomson Reuters Markets

When Thomson Corporation and Reuters merged in 2008 to form Thomson Reuters, Wenig was appointed CEO of Thomson Reuters Markets, the division encompassing the combined entity's financial and media businesses. He served in this role from April 2008 to August 2011. As head of the Markets division, Wenig oversaw a substantial portion of the newly merged company's operations, managing the integration of two large, complex organizations with distinct corporate cultures and technology platforms. The Markets division was responsible for providing financial data, analytics, and trading platforms to financial institutions and professionals worldwide.

Wenig's tenure at Thomson Reuters Markets coincided with the global financial crisis and its aftermath, a period that reshaped the financial services industry and the companies that served it. His experience managing a large-scale corporate merger and navigating the post-crisis financial landscape would later inform his approach to leading eBay through its own period of transformation.

In 2005, prior to the Thomson Reuters merger, Wenig had been recognized by Crain's New York Business as one of its "40 Under 40" honorees, an annual list highlighting emerging business leaders in the New York metropolitan area.

eBay

Joining eBay and Rise to CEO

Wenig joined eBay and was appointed to the company's board of directors in 2011. He took on senior leadership roles within the company during a period when eBay was grappling with intensifying competition from Amazon and other e-commerce platforms, as well as questions about the long-term strategic fit between eBay's marketplace business and its payment subsidiary, PayPal.

In October 2014, amid pressure from activist investor Carl Icahn and others, eBay announced plans to spin off PayPal into a separate publicly traded company. The separation, which was expected to result in significant executive compensation costs, set the stage for a new chapter in eBay's corporate history.

In July 2015, when the PayPal spinoff was completed, Wenig became president and CEO of the newly independent eBay Inc., succeeding John Donahoe, who had overseen the company during the period when eBay and PayPal operated as a single entity. Wenig took the helm of a company that, while still one of the world's largest e-commerce platforms, faced fundamental questions about its competitive positioning and growth strategy in a market increasingly dominated by Amazon.

Tenure as CEO

As CEO, Wenig focused on modernizing eBay's technology platform, improving the buyer and seller experience, and repositioning the marketplace to compete more effectively. He emphasized eBay's strengths as a platform for unique, collectible, and hard-to-find items, seeking to differentiate it from competitors focused primarily on new, commodity goods. In a 2019 interview with CNBC, Wenig discussed eBay's growth strategy and the competitive dynamics of the e-commerce industry.

During his tenure, Wenig pursued initiatives to use structured data and artificial intelligence to improve search and product discovery on the platform. He also oversaw efforts to streamline eBay's payment processing, eventually moving toward a managed payments system that would reduce the company's reliance on PayPal for transaction processing.

Wenig was named to Forbes's list of Innovative Leaders during his time leading eBay. He was also recognized by RIS News as one of retail's ten best CEOs.

Departure

On September 25, 2019, eBay announced that Wenig had stepped down as president, CEO, and member of the board of directors. The departure came amid an ongoing review of the company's operations and strategy prompted by activist investors, including Elliott Management Corporation and Starboard Value, who had acquired significant stakes in eBay and pushed for changes including the potential sale of the company's StubHub and classified advertising businesses.

Scott Schenkel, eBay's chief financial officer, was named interim CEO following Wenig's departure. Jamie Iannone was later appointed as Wenig's permanent successor.

eBay Cyberstalking Scandal

In June 2020, the United States Department of Justice announced criminal charges against six former eBay employees for their roles in a cyberstalking campaign directed at Ina and David Steiner, the publishers of EcommerceBytes, an online newsletter that covered the e-commerce industry and was often critical of eBay.

The harassment campaign, which took place in 2019 during Wenig's tenure as CEO, involved sending the Steiners disturbing deliveries including live cockroaches, a bloody pig mask, a funeral wreath, and a book about surviving the loss of a spouse. eBay employees also conducted surveillance of the couple near their home in Natick, Massachusetts.

The six charged employees included members of eBay's global security and resiliency team. Several of the defendants eventually pleaded guilty to charges including conspiracy to commit cyberstalking and conspiracy to tamper with witnesses.

eBay issued a statement acknowledging the conduct and stating that the employees involved had been terminated. The company said it had cooperated with law enforcement and conducted its own investigation.

Wenig was not criminally charged in connection with the cyberstalking campaign. In a statement provided to 60 Minutes in August 2023, Wenig addressed the matter, though the specific details of his statement were characterized by CBS News as a formal response to the program's reporting on the scandal.

However, the Steiners filed a civil lawsuit naming eBay, Wenig, and several other former executives as defendants. In August 2025, a judge ruled on summary judgment motions in the case, allowing key claims against eBay and the former executives, including Wenig, to proceed to trial while paring back some other claims.

In September 2025, attorneys for Wenig and other former executives sought to separate their trial from that of the company and the criminally convicted defendants. The civil trial, originally scheduled for late 2025, was postponed and rescheduled for March 2026. The Steiners publicly criticized the delays, characterizing them as a denial of justice.

The Boston Globe reported in 2021 on the Steiners' account of the harassment, in which they described the ordeal and its lasting effects on their lives. Fortune published commentary in 2020 arguing that the company's former leadership had not been held sufficiently accountable for the scandal.

Board Service and Subsequent Activities

In April 2018, while still serving as eBay's CEO, Wenig was appointed to the board of directors of General Motors. He has also served as a director of Cruise Automation, General Motors' autonomous vehicle subsidiary.

In 2021, Wenig was announced as a member of Salesforce's Global Advisory Board, an advisory body established to support the company's international expansion.

Personal Life

Wenig married Cindy Lee Horowitz in 1993. Their wedding was reported by The New York Times.

Recognition

During his career, Wenig received several professional honors and recognitions. In 2005, he was named to the Crain's New York Business "40 Under 40" list, which highlighted rising business leaders in New York City. While serving as CEO of eBay, he was included on the Forbes Innovative Leaders list. RIS News also recognized him as one of retail's ten best CEOs.

Forbes has maintained a profile of Wenig as part of its coverage of prominent business executives.

Legacy

Wenig's tenure at eBay represents a complex chapter in the company's history. He led the company through its post-PayPal period as an independent marketplace, pursuing modernization and competitive repositioning at a time when the e-commerce industry was undergoing rapid consolidation around a small number of dominant platforms. His efforts to leverage structured data and artificial intelligence to improve the eBay marketplace were recognized by industry observers, and his inclusion on multiple "best CEO" lists reflected a degree of professional esteem during his active leadership.

However, Wenig's legacy is inextricably linked to the cyberstalking scandal that emerged after his departure. Although he has not been criminally charged, the civil litigation naming him as a defendant remained active as of late 2025, and the case has drawn sustained media attention including coverage by 60 Minutes, The New York Times, The Boston Globe, and other major outlets. The outcome of the pending civil trial, scheduled for March 2026, may further shape assessments of his role during this period.

Prior to eBay, Wenig's leadership of Thomson Reuters Markets during the company's formation through merger and through the global financial crisis demonstrated his capacity to manage complex organizational transformations. His board service at General Motors and Cruise Automation reflected continued involvement in sectors at the intersection of technology and traditional industry.