MUMBAI: Yahoo! has named Scott Thompson, president of eBay‘s PayPal division, as its new CEO. Thompson will assume charge on 9 January.

Thompson‘s hiring comes at a time when the company is reviewing its strategic direction and deals with the fallout from its previous CEO Carol Bartz, who had joined Yahoo without much online-advertising experience.

Yahoo! had asked Bartz to go in September 2011 after losing patience with her attempts to turn around the company in the two and half years she was at the helm. Since then, Yahoo CFO Tim Morse has been interim CEO.

“Scott brings to Yahoo! a proven record of building on a solid foundation of existing assets and resources to reignite innovation and drive growth, precisely the formula we need at Yahoo!. His deep understanding of online businesses combined with his team building and operational capabilities will restore the energy, focus, and momentum necessary to grow the core business and deliver increased value for our shareholders,” Yahoo chairman Roy Bostock said in a statement.

Thompson has also been appointed to the company’s board of directors.

“Scott’s primary focus will be on the core business, and as CEO and Director, he will work closely with the board as we continue the strategic review process to identify the best approaches for the company and its shareholders. As part of this process, Yahoo! is considering a wide range of opportunities for the company’s business, as well as specific investments or dispositions of assets,” added Bostock.

Thompson has served as president of PayPal, eBay‘s online payment service, since January 2008 and earlier, he served as the company‘s senior VP and chief technology officer.

Thompson said, “With the ultimate goal of delivering the value our shareholders expect, my immediate focus will be on getting to know the entire team and hearing more from all Yahoo!s, working closely with the engineers and product teams, and diving deeply into our products and services to learn more about what our more than 700 million users find most engaging and useful.”