"The Card No One Wanted": Bought for 7.7 Billion Won, Resold at a Stunning Price

Logan Paul's 'Pok?mon Illustrator' Card
Sold for 16.49 Million Dollars...PSA 10 Rarity in the Spotlight

The 'Pok?mon Illustrator' card owned by YouTuber and professional wrestler Logan Paul was sold together with a diamond necklace for 23.8 billion won, breaking the all-time record for a trading card auction. As this ultra-rare card was given to only 39 people and is preserved in top-grade condition, commentators say its symbolism and scarcity drove up the price.

Image of the Pikachu Illustrator card sold for 23.8 billion won (left) and the Pikachu card sold in Japan for 700 million yen. Logan Paul's Instagram, Japan Game Park website.

According to CNN and other foreign media on the 16th (local time), the 'Pikachu Illustrator' card sold for 16,492,000 dollars (about 23,888,660,000 won), including fees, at an online auction hosted by U.S. auction house Goldin. This is the highest price ever paid for a trading card at auction.

A representative from Guinness World Records who attended the event confirmed officially that Logan Paul had sold the most expensive trading card in history.

The card is a limited edition that was given only to 39 prize winners of an illustration contest hosted in 1998 by the comic magazine CoroCoro Comic. It was created by Atsuko Nishida, who first designed Pikachu, and is characterized by an illustration of Pikachu holding a paintbrush.

Logan Paul purchased this card in 2021 for 5,275,000 dollars (about 7.7 billion won). At the time, he acquired it through a deal in which he traded in a PSA 9-graded card he already owned, valued at 1,275,000 dollars (about 1,846,000,000 won), and added 4 million dollars (about 5,790,000,000 won) in cash.

In 2022, when he appeared at WrestleMania 38, Logan Paul wore the card inside a specially made diamond necklace worth 80,000 dollars. The specially made necklace was also included in this auction, and he announced that he would personally deliver the card to the winning bidder.

Excluding auction fees, Logan Paul earned a profit of more than 8 million dollars (about 11.5 billion won). He said, "This is truly insane," unable to hide his amazement. On Instagram, he also posted a farewell message, saying, "Goodbye, my friend. It was a great honor to own the greatest collectible in the world."

Meanwhile, the card received the highest grade, 'PSA 10', from the card grading agency PSA. Among 'Pikachu Illustrator' cards, only eight have ever received a PSA grade of 9 or higher.

With the symbolism of being awarded only to contest winners, the rarity of having only 39 copies distributed, and the added factor of top-grade preservation, this card has established itself as a 'legendary card' that sets a new price record every time it changes hands.