Pokmon cards would be global currency during apocalypse, venture capitalist predicts

A high-rolling venture capitalist says Pokémon cards would become the global currency during an apocalypse, noting that their returns have beaten the S&P 500 by over 3,000%.Peter Levin — the founder and managing director of Griffin Gaming Partners, which invests in gaming and sports companies — is an avid trader himself, with a collection well north of half a million cards.“I’m absolutely convinced that if the world suffered an apocalypse tomorrow, the following day the global currency would be Pokémon cards,” he told the Hollywood Reporter in an interview just about trading cards.“You could walk into a trading card shop or a Walmart, a Costco, or a Walgreens, and buy a pack of cards, and the odds of you pulling a rare and valuable card are no less or greater than my odds.I think the democratization of that experience is what keeps the industry going,” Levin added.Over the past few years, trading cards have seen a rapid return to popularity, largely stemming from amateur investors stuck at home during the pandemic – who also drove other fringe trades, like the GameStop meme stock.Logan Paul jumped in on the fun, setting a world record with his $5 million purchase of a rare Pikachu Illustrator card five years ago.

He went on to sell it for a whopping $16 million earlier this year, breaking yet another record.Mint-condition cards can be so valuable that they have even inspired crime sprees, with a crew of bandits in New Jersey stealing $50,000 worth of Pokémon cards in a smash-and-go robbery in June.Pokémon fans have taken the brand’s “Gotta catch em all!” catchphrase to heart, stashing away hordes of cards as their valuations skyrocket – with some comparing the investment strategy to their Roth IRAs or brokerage accounts.Since 2004, the cards – which are not subject to financial regulation – have seen a roughly 3,821% return, according to Card Ladder data cited by the Wall Street Journal last year.Over the same period, the S&...