Pokemon fever may subside, but those real fans are willing to pay more than $50,000 for “Pikachu Illustrator” trading card. Yes, you read that right – the card that has been dubbed “the world’s most valuable Pokemon card” because of its rarity just sold at auction in Beverly Hills for exactly $54,970. According to Barry Sandoval, Director of Operations for Comics at Heritage Auctions, a Pokémon Illustrator card went for around $23,000 during the early 2000s, but at the latest auction smashed that record.
Only 20 to 39 copies of this card were released, 10 of which are graded in top condition and it is unknown how many still remain with the public.”
The card was brought to auction after the whirlwind success of the Pokemon Go app, which attracted more than 20 million active users. The app helped boost Pokemon card values, according to Heritage Auctions.