Tom Brady is now setting records in the world of cryptocurrency.
An unidentified buyer recently paid $1.7 million worth of the virtual currency Litecoin for an autographed Brady rookie card, reports Crypto News. The auction house, Goldin Auctions, says it’s the most expensive item to be paid in crypto since the company began accepting the form of payment in March.
“Trading cards and crypto are now two of the most rapidly growing alternative asset classes and we know there is a lot of overlap between the communities,” Ken Goldin, founder of Goldin Auctions, told Sports Collectors Daily.
Earlier this month, another autographed Brady rookie card sold for $2.25 million, though that total was paid in hard cash. Boring!
The sports card and memorabilia market is booming, with domestic sales for trading cards climbing 142 percent on eBay in 2020. Last August, a Mike Trout trading card sold for $3.9 million. An entrepreneur told New York Magazine he paid $5.2 million for a 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle card.
While some of the increased interest in trading cards can probably be traced to pandemic boredom, the items are also viewed as investments.
“Over the last several years, I’ve seen a bunch of younger folks come in,” Jeff Rosenberg, the president and CEO of a Houston-based memorabilia company, said to New York. “And some of them like the cards. (To) others, it’s really a strategic asset. These cards to them are no different than a stock portfolio.”
With an eight Super Bowl in his sights, Brady’s stock promises to keep rising, in the digital sphere or otherwise.
