Scott Thompson, formally known as president and CEO of PayPal, is named as Yahoo Inc.'s new CEO. [File photo]

Yahoo Inc. named PayPal president Scott Thompson its new CEO Wednesday, the California-base IT company announced.

Interim CEO Tim Morse who led the company the past few months returned to his previous post of chief financial officer.

After the company sacked its former CEO Carl Bartz last September, Yahoo had been scouting for its new head with the help of executive search firm Heidrick & Struggles.

Thompson's arrival is coupled with speculations over the IT giant's future. Yahoo is in discussions with Alibaba and Softbank Corp. to reach a tax-avoidance deal in the hopes of selling its partial Asian assets. Analysts are anticipating smooth negotiations that will end up bringing large cash infusion for the struggling Internet portal company.

Thompson took a position at PayPal as chief technical officer before he became president and CEO of the company in 2008. Before he joined the eBay subsidiary, he worked for Inovant, a subsidiary of Visa, and Barclays Global Investors.

China's business press carried the story above on Thursday.