Andrew Mason Out at Groupon

Groupon

founder Andrew Mason was removed from his role as CEO Thursday. Shares closed down nearly 25%, but rallied almost 5% in the after-hours session. In his place, the company named Chairman Eric Lefkofsky and Vice Chairman Ted Leonsis in an interim role. The company said it has begun its search for a replacement CEO. Since going public in late 2011, shares have experienced a dramatic drop -- falling from as high as $31 to as low as $2.60. Shares more than doubled in the last three months, before shedding about a quarter of the market cap following a disappointing earnings release Wednesday. It's unknown who Groupon would pursue to replace Mason, but perhaps they would consider adding an e-commerce veteran from a company like Amazon

or Ebay

.