- EBay has been building out its digital and physical collectible offering
- 31,000 square-foot facility has 24/7 security and climate controls
Online auction platform EBay has continued its push into physical and digital sports collectibles with the launch of a new trading card submission service for EBay Vault.
Collectors, investors and professional sellers can now submit eligible graded cards worth US$250 or greater directly to the company’s state-of-the-art collection facility for specialised, secure, long-term storage.
The 31,000 square-foot facility has 24/7 surveillance, biometric security and intrusion detection systems, and temperature and humidity controls to guard against theft or degradation. While the primary focus of the vault is safekeeping, it also speeds up the card trading process and enables fractional ownership.
Individual trading cards, or entire collections, can be stored at the facility until they are sold.
“We know collectors – from those newer to the hobby to professional sellers – all want to manage their high value trading card portfolios with complete confidence through fast, seamless transactions,” said Gene Cook, vice president of global collectibles at EBay.
“The EBay vault is backed by nearly 28 years of leadership in the collectibles category, and our new submission service delivers easy and secure buying, selling and storage for collectors to excel in the fast-paced world of sports collecting.”
EBay has added several features to support the collectibles market in recent times, including price guide, collection and image scan tools, as well as an ‘authenticity guarantee’ which sees the Professional Sports Authenticator (PSA) verify any card sold for more than US$2,000.
The company also bought trading card marketplace TCGPlayer for US$295 million last year, acquiring customers, software and hardware in the process.
SportsPro says…
There has been plenty of activity in the trading card space in recent years, driven by a desire for alternative investments.
Rare sports cards are now selling for millions of dollars at auction, while non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are also attracting interest from speculators. This is driving investment and development in the startup ecosystem.
While EBay hopes to use its massive reach to secure a share of this growing market, several startups, including CollX, Ludex and Derek Jeter’s Arena Club, have sought to develop technology and marketplaces.
