Pinterest’s CEO and co-founder, Ben Silbermann, has stepped down from his position after 12 years. Pinterest was founded in 2010, the platform has grown rapidly since then and now has more than 430 million monthly active users.
Pinterest’s CEO to be replaced by Google’s executive
Bill Ready, who has spent the last couple of years as head of Commerce, Payments & Next Billion Users at Google, is set to replace Ben Silbermann. However, Silbermann isn’t leaving the company, though, he’ll be Pinterest’s executive chairman. After the news broke, the company’s shares rose to 9% in the extended trading
Regarding Bill, Pinterest’s CEO said; “Bill’s actually going to be a better CEO than I am for this next chapter.” He further added; “As someone who has spent most of my career in commerce and payments, it’s so clear to me that Pinterest has the opportunity to build something unique—something special.” Ready was a top executive at both Venmo and PayPal before going to Google in 2020 to run its various commerce projects. He wrote in a LinkedIn post; “In the next phase of our journey, we will help people engage more deeply with all the inspiring products and services they find on our platform so they can build their best lives.”
Nick Fox to assume Bill Ready’s vacant position
Nick Fox, the vice president who heads up Google’s long-term bets, will takeover Bill Ready’s role as Google’s head of Commerce and Payments. In his nearly 20 years with the company, Fox has held a variety of roles. At one point, he helmed up the company’s communication products including Google Voice and Hangouts, as well as its Adwords unit. A Google spokesperson told an international media outlet; “Bill has played a key role in setting a new vision and strategy for Commerce and Payments at Google. We will continue building on this strong foundation to make helpful, commerce experiences universally accessible for our users and our partners.”
Read more: PayPal in Talks to Acquire Pinterest
