Pokémon Card Values Spark Hobby-Shop Burglaries in Australia as Top Cards Fetch $16.5 Million
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Aug 16
Pokémon Card Values Spark Hobby-Shop Burglaries in Australia as Top Cards Fetch $16.5 Million
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Aug 16
Summary
$16.5 million Pokémon cards are helping drive a current wave of hobby-shop burglaries across Australia, as trading cards have become valuable enough to function almost like a parallel currency.
That surge in value builds on a long-running collecting culture around the Pokémon Trading Card Game, which turned into an immediate hit in Australia and drew A$11 million in sales in its first two months in 1999.
The franchise has repeatedly attracted controversy alongside its popularity, with earlier panics over schoolyard trading, bans and reports of theft and counterfeit activity.
Pokémon still sits at the center of Australian popular culture nearly 30 years after its launch, while growing card prices show how a childhood hobby has become a high-value target.
How did a 1990s children's game accused of promoting witchcraft transform into a multi-million dollar target for international thieves?
Why did the exact game schools banned for causing playground disputes ultimately become a global tool for improving mental health and community connection?