Logan Paul’s ‘holy grail’ Pokémon card sells for $16.492M with diamond necklace

Lead: On Monday, a rare Pikachu Illustrator trading card owned by Logan Paul sold at Goldin Auctions for $16.492 million, with a diamond-encrusted necklace included and a promise of hand delivery to the buyer. The 42-day auction closed after 97 bids and hours of extended bidding; a Guinness World Records official subsequently confirmed it as the highest-price trading card sold at auction. Five years after Paul paid $5.275 million for what became the same asset, the transaction appears to leave him with an estimated multi-million-dollar gain after fees. Paul described the result during his livestream as ‘absolutely insane’.

Key Takeaways

• The final hammer price was $16.492 million at Goldin Auctions, reached after 97 total bids and extended closing rounds.
• The auction ran for 42 days and surged from an earlier plateau at $6.882 million during late-stage offers.
• The lot included a custom diamond necklace that Paul had worn at WrestleMania 38 and an undertaking to deliver the card in person.
• Paul originally acquired the asset for $5.275 million roughly five years earlier, via a July 2021 swap involving a PSA Grade 9 Pikachu Illustrator (valued at $1.275 million) plus $4 million in cash.
• The sold card is the only Pikachu Illustrator graded PSA Grade 10, one of 20 Illustrator cards graded by PSA and one of 39 produced for a late-1990s illustration contest.
• Goldin Auctions and industry figures describe the Illustrator as the ‘holy grail’ of Pokémon cards; market commentary links recent gains in high-end cards to outsized returns versus traditional assets.
• Industry observers say the sale sets a new public-auction benchmark for trading cards and may influence pricing in the ultra-rare collectibles market.

Background

The Pikachu Illustrator card traces to a late-1990s competition and is widely regarded among collectors as the most coveted Pokémon paper collectible. Only 39 copies are believed to have been awarded originally, and a limited subset has been graded by PSA, the dominant authentication agency for trading cards. Within that already tiny pool, the card sold by Paul is notable for being the only copy that PSA has assessed as a Grade 10, the agency’s highest grade for condition and authenticity.

The modern market for collectible cards has seen dramatic price appreciation, with high-grade and historically significant examples drawing institutional-level interest and media attention. Auction houses such as Goldin have specialized marketplaces and promotional channels that amplify headline sales. Sellers with public profiles, including celebrities and influencers, have played a role in concentrating attention — and prices — at the very top of the market.

Main Event

The Goldin Auctions listing opened for a 42-day period and drew persistent bidding that culminated in a prolonged final phase on Monday. For much of the closing window the price hovered around $6.882 million until a burst of late offers pushed the total to $16.492 million. Auction reports record 97 bids in total and several hours of extended bidding before the lot closed.

Logan Paul, a social media personality and WWE performer, had displayed the card publicly and wore a custom necklace containing the card at WrestleMania 38, a detail that became part of the lot’s provenance. During the auction’s live-streamed close Paul said, in part, that ‘we may have tired someone out’, and celebrated as confetti fell when the sale concluded. Immediately after the hammer, a Guinness World Records representative appeared and acknowledged the sale as the highest-price trading card sold at auction.

Paul originally obtained the current Grade 10 copy in July 2021 by trading a PSA Grade 9 Pikachu Illustrator he owned plus $4 million in cash. That swap converted an earlier holding into the only known PSA Grade 10 example, a distinction cited repeatedly by auctioneers and analysts during promotion. Paul also posted a farewell message on Instagram prior to the sale, thanking the card and reflecting on his ownership.

Analysis & Implications

At the headline level, the sale confirms sustained collector appetite for conditionally perfect, historically meaningful cards and validates aggressive price discovery at auction. Where mainstream assets typically move in smaller, incremental steps, ultra-rare collectibles can leap in value when scarcity, provenance and publicity converge. The result will likely push other high-end sellers to test price ceilings and may attract new speculative capital to the category.

Market participants should note countervailing risks: liquidity at extreme price points is limited, valuation can be volatile, and transaction costs (including buyer’s/seller’s premiums) materially affect net proceeds. Estimates that position collectibles as outperforming equities — such as an oft-cited ‘3,000% outperformance versus the S&P over 20 years’ quoted by market figures — are useful for context but depend heavily on start/end dates and selection bias among held assets.

The involvement of a high-profile seller amplifies media attention and may create short-term demand pressure for adjacent items, but it also concentrates reputational and market risk. If a small number of headline sales set public expectations, the market could see rapid price corrections if fewer buyers appear at subsequent auctions. Regulators and tax authorities may also increase scrutiny as large private- and public-market transactions generate more taxable events and cross-border movements of valuable collectibles.

Comparison & Data

The table locates the headline sale within Pauls acquisition history and the small universe of graded Illustrator cards. The arithmetic implies a gross multiple on Paul’s original $5.275M cash-equivalent basis that exceeds threefold in roughly five years, although net profit depends on final fees and taxes. PSA population figures underline the scarcity that underpins collector willingness to bid at this scale.

Reactions & Quotes

Industry leaders and officials reacted rapidly after the sale closed, framing the transaction both as a market milestone and a marketing moment for high-end collectibles.

Goldin Auctions’ founder characterized the Illustrator as the most coveted trading card in the world and emphasized its near-flawless condition.

Ken Goldin, Goldin Auctions (auction house founder)

Goldin’s comments were used in auction promotion and in interviews to contextualize the sale’s price relative to other high-end collectibles; he also cited broader market returns to explain growing buyer interest. Independent experts warn that promotional framing can lift headline prices but does not eliminate market risk.

During the auction livestream Paul said he thought the bidding had ‘tired someone out’ and celebrated the close as an incredible moment.

Logan Paul (seller, influencer/WWE performer)

Paul’s live commentary and prior public displays of the necklace and card became part of the sale’s provenance, increasing visibility among his large online audience and likely driving additional bidder attention.

A Guinness World Records official confirmed the sale as the highest-price trading card sold at auction during the post-hammer appearance.

Guinness World Records (record authority)

The Guinness acknowledgement provides an independent benchmark that auction houses and media can cite when comparing future sales in the trading-card market.

Unconfirmed

• The widely reported estimate that Paul netted more than $8 million after auction fees is an industry calculation and has not been publicly verified with final fee statements or tax details.
• The identity of the winning bidder and the timeline for the promised in-person delivery remain private and unconfirmed at the time of reporting.

Bottom Line

This sale sets a new public-auction price benchmark for trading cards and underscores how extreme scarcity, high-grade condition and celebrity provenance can combine to produce headline-making prices. While the arithmetic suggests a substantial uplift versus Paul’s 2021 acquisition path, final net proceeds depend on premiums, fees and taxes that have not been fully disclosed.

For the collectibles market, the transaction may attract additional speculative capital, encourage more sellers to consign rare items to marquee auctions, and push secondary prices higher in the short term. At the same time, limited liquidity at the very top of the market and the potential for rapid sentiment shifts mean that buyers and advisors should weigh both upside and downside scenarios carefully.

Sources

• CNN (news report summarizing auction and livestream coverage)
• Goldin Auctions (auction house listing and promotional material)
• PSA (authentication and grading agency information)