[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] Ben Silbermann, CEO and founder of the social networking service (SNS) Pinterest, announced on the 28th (local time) that he will resign.
According to The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) and others, Pinterest stated that Silbermann will step down as CEO and move to the position of chairman of the board. Silbermann, 39 years old this year, has served as CEO for 12 years since founding Pinterest in 2010. He said, "I have made what I believe is the best decision for Pinterest," and plans to spend more time on unmet consumer needs and new products in the future.
Pinterest announced that Bill Ready, who was in charge of Google's commerce business, will take over as the new CEO. Before joining Google, Ready served as Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the online payment service company PayPal and CEO of the mobile money transfer service Venmo. He will also join Pinterest's board of directors.
Pinterest has long focused on its advertising business with over 400 million monthly active users. However, in recent years, it has shifted its business priority to e-commerce. Earlier this month, it announced the acquisition of The Yes, an AI-based shopping platform for fashion brands.
After the news was released, Pinterest's stock price fell about 5% in after-hours trading. Pinterest's stock price has dropped 45.8% since the beginning of this year and has fallen nearly 76% from its 52-week high.
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