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Pikachu Illustrator’s $16.5 million sale is drawing new investors to Pokémon cards, while eBay calls Pokémon its most-searched collectibles term and Heritage values a first-edition Charizard at $500,000.
The PSA 10 Raincoat Pikachu drew 64 bids on Fanatics Collect, jumping 5,340% from a $156,250 Heritage sale three months earlier despite 57 Gem Mint copies.
Y. Fujishima’s PSA 10 Art Academy Pikachu drew 64 bids on Sept. 28, soaring from a $135,000 June comp to $8.4 million despite a PSA 10 population of 57.
A PSA 9 Pikachu Illustrator sold for $5 million at Heritage, up from the $840,000 paid for a PSA 9 in 2022; only 15 copies have received that grade.
Heritage Auctions sold the PSA 9 Pikachu Illustrator in Texas; only 39 copies were awarded through CoroCoro illustration contests in 1998.
Two Pikachu Illustrator cards sold for $5 million and $2.81 million, driving the Sept. 13–20 Top 5 to $11.34 million; vintage Pokémon also logged $750,000 and $575,000 sales.
A BGS 9.5 Japanese Gold Star Charizard reached $18,600 after selling for $8,700 in December, while a PSA 10 Grey Stamp Nidoking brought $22,500 at Heritage.
Heritage sold Japanese Base Set for $137,500, Expedition for $112,500 and Neo Destiny for $60,000, with all three beating prior records as vintage sealed supply continues to shrink.
The all-PSA 10 collection of 102 cards sold during Heritage’s June 26–27 auction, which totaled a record $7.89 million; Pikachu Illustrator PSA 8.5 fetched $843,750.