Online marketplace Etsy has acquired Depop, the marketplace for unique fashion for $1.625 billion. Following the closing of the transaction, currently anticipated to occur during the third quarter of 2021, Depop will continue to be headquartered in London, England and operate as a standalone marketplace run by its existing leadership team.

The 10-year-old company has been growing fast in recent periods with its business model as a community-powered marketplace to buy and sell unique fashion resonating particularly with young consumer groups. Around 90% of its active users are under the age of 26 and it said young consumers are adopting secondhand fashion faster than any other audience.

Josh Silverman, Etsy, Inc. CEO, commented, "We are simply thrilled to be adding Depop—what we believe to be the resale home for Gen Z consumers—to the Etsy family. Depop is a vibrant, two-sided marketplace with a passionate community, a highly-differentiated offering of unique items, and we believe significant potential to further scale. Depop's world-class management team and employees have done a fantastic job nurturing this community and driving organic, authentic growth in a way that aligns well with Etsy's DNA and mission of Keeping Commerce Human. We see significant opportunities for shared expertise and growth synergies across what will now be a tremendous 'house of brands' portfolio of individually distinct, and very special, ecommerce brands."

After the deal goes through, Depop will continue to be run as a standalone operation with its existing leadership team under CEO Maria Raga staying in place.