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This photograph shows displayed collectible cards from the Pokemon Trading Card Game (TCG) at an amateur collector's appartment in Paris on March 11, 2026. Martin Lelievre | Afp | Getty Images
When I was a kid in the late 90s, collecting Pokémon cards was a fun hobby. I'd buy packs, hoping to get the rarest "shinies," or holographic cards. We'd trade with friends and even go to meet-ups to trade cards trying to "catch 'em all" —a catchphrase that defined the franchise that had gone from Nintendo Game Boy to an anime TV show. When I started collecting again two years ago, things had changed. I've stood in line with 100 people in a parking lot outside a toy store for the latest restock of cards. I've seen four men huddled around their car talking about how much they could make by selling the trunk of cards they bought during a morning hitting different stores. New cards can sell out in minutes. People coordinate on X and Discord to know where to go. There are similar scenes in the U.S. Videos have circulated on social media of people stampeding over each other to get their hands on card packs. There have even been reports of smash-and-grab thefts of stores that stock cards. Prized cards resell at multiples of what they retail for. The rarest can sell for millions of dollars. It's a stark contrast from when I could walk into any store and buy however many I wanted.
A long line of people had formed outside Smyths toy store in Staines, U.K., before the store had opened as fans looked to get their hands on the latest restock of Pokemon cards on March 28, 2026. Arjun Kharpal | CNBC
From 2004 to 2020, Pokémon card prices rose 282%, according to an index compiled by Collectors, which owns card grading agency Professional Sports Authenticator (PSA). Since 2020, prices have risen by an incredible 1,350%, per the index. Prices have surged and even outperformed traditional asset classes, attracting the attention of people looking to make a quick buck and ultra-high net worth individuals seeking investment assets to protect or grow their wealth. People who have made money from cryptocurrency are piling into the market, market watchers told CNBC, as prices reach unprecedented levels.
What are Pokémon cards?
A Pikachu Character poses at the Pokemon stand during the Brand Licensing Europe at ExCel on October 04, 2023 in London, England. John Keeble | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Pokémon captured people's attention in 1996 when the first games were released for the Nintendo Game Boy. The trading cards followed shortly after. While Pokémon continued to print cards, their popularity waned in the 2000s. Everything changed with the 2016 release of "Pokémon Go," a smartphone game that had people chasing across cities to "catch" Pokémon in the real world. The launch of Nintendo Switch in 2017 and new Pokémon games for the console brought nostalgic millennials and new gamers into the world. The cards gained particular popularity over the last three years, as The Pokémon Company, which owns the franchise, releases sets with original characters that were introduced in the late 90s. "It's kind of like a Pokémon renaissance," Stephanie Farnsworth, a lecturer in media and communications at the University of Sunderland, told CNBC in an interview. The Pokémon Company continues to release new sets of cards every few months, with hype being driven this year by special 30th anniversary products.
Pokémon market rally
As well as raising prices, high-profile sales have further driven the hype in the last few years. In February, influencer Logan Paul sold a rare Pikachu Illustrator card for more than $16 million, after buying it for just over $5 million in 2021.
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