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Unchained

Why Pokémon Cards Are Better Onchain (and How to Trade Them) - Ep. 898

Unchained

Laura Shin

News, Tech News, Business News

4.61.3K Ratings

🗓️ 5 September 2025

⏱️ 70 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Pokémon cards are no longer just collectibles stuffed in a binder. They’re becoming liquid, tradable assets onchain. In this episode, Collector Crypt CEO Tuom Holmberg and Bitwise’s Danny Nelson explain how the project is reimagining the $100 billion trading card industry. From slashing eBay’s 13% fees to near-zero, to solving decades-old authentication problems with vaulting and NFTs, to launching a token that surged 700% in weeks, Collector Crypt is pushing trading cards into crypto rails. We also explore whether this is the start of a “Polymarket moment” for collectibles, how these cards could be used in DeFi, and if mainstream investors might soon allocate to Pokémon decks alongside BTC and ETH. Thank you to our sponsors! Re Walrus Guests: Danny Nelson, Research Analyst at Bitwise Asset Management ⁠Tuom Holmberg⁠, CEO of Collector Crypt Timestamps: 🎬 0:00 Intro 🛒 2:35 Why eBay’s fees are so high and how Collector Crypt cuts them down 🎴 7:50 How a Pokémon card collector would actually trade onchain 🔒 9:40 What security measures protect vaulted cards 👤 11:13 How Tuom’s background led him to build Collector Crypt 📉 13:14 The highs and lows of launching the app over time ⚖️ 21:24 How the company navigates copyright issues with Pokémon 💰 23:05 Why the $CARDS token surged 700% in weeks 🏦 28:28 How Collector Crypt makes money ⚡ 29:43 Why the team chose to build on Solana 🌍 31:43 How big the trading card market could get onchain 🔮 35:03 What’s next in Collector Crypt’s roadmap 🔥 39:25 Why Danny Nelson calls this a “Polymarket moment” 🖼️ 41:31 What makes digital trading cards different from other tokenized assets 👀 45:06 Why Collector Crypt grabbed so much attention last week 📊 49:22 How traditional funds could start investing in trading cards 🌐 52:04 Whether trading cards are about to go mainstream 🔗 53:40 How Pokémon decks could even be used in DeFi Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

In many ways, you know, it's a reimagining of the way collectibles are traded.

0:05.2

And, you know, I think we are seeing kind of like the very earliest scrape of extreme product market fit for crypto solving an issue that's been percolating in the real world for decades.

0:18.2

I went to the card shop last night. I bought this shiny Charzard.

0:21.6

I'm actually not a Pokemon card collector.

0:23.6

I'm a baseball card collector.

0:25.6

I do wish I was a Pokemon card collector.

0:27.6

I was going through my baseball cards this morning, just looking at them thinking, these are

0:32.6

worthless.

0:33.6

What was I doing with my time?

0:34.6

I should have been buying Pokemon cards.

0:36.6

I am not buying Pokemon cards.

0:44.3

I am not a Pokemon card person, but I know people who are very much in this world. So my ears perked up about this new training card game phenomenon that's been picking up steam.

0:49.3

Tom Holmberg of Collector Crypt is a crypto OG.

0:52.3

He and his team have been working for years on CollectorCrypt,

0:55.0

which is an on-chain trading card marketplace,

0:58.0

and which is taking off now with the recent launch of their cards token.

1:01.0

I was fascinated to hear the creative ways the team has solved the problems that collectors face,

1:06.0

the ways he thinks that this phenomenon can grow,

1:09.0

and how it can extend well beyond Pokemon

1:11.4

cards. I also chatted with Danny Nelson a bitwise, who had some great insights into how

1:16.6

Pokemon cards differ from other real-world assets and why he thinks this could be a breakout

1:21.4

moment for trading card games and for further mainstream adoption of crypto. I hope you enjoy

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