The sports card and memorabilia boom took another huge step on Tuesday when Goldin Auctions, the largest sports auction house, announced it had received a $40 million infusion of capital from The Chernin Group.
The money invested by TCG, parent company of The Action Network, will be used to further build the auction house, including updated technology, which grossed more than $100 million in sales in 2020.
Huge names that participated in the funding round include Kevin Durant, Deshaun Watson, Dwyane Wade, Logan Paul, Timbaland and Bill Simmons. Other big names include Mark Cuban, YouTube founder Chad Hurley, former Twitter executives Dick Costolo and Adam Bain and crypto king Anthony Pompliano.
Goldin Auctions gained attention by being the auction house to first shift to modern cards. In August, it sold a Mike Trout rookie card for $3.9 million, then the all-time card record. In December, Goldin sold a Giannis Antetokounmpko card for $1.1 million. Goldin also sold the record Michael Jordan PSA 10 rookies, which sold last month for $738,000 each.
Goldin differentiated itself by landing some new big money in the space before everyone else and the money came from all over the world — including buyers in Australia, China, Japan and the Philippines — to buy in its auctions.
Ken Goldin, a lifer in the industry who founded Goldin Auctions in 2012, will stay on as chairman. Ross Hoffman, whose executive career has included both Twitter and Headspace, will come on as the CEO.
"People today don't want to invest like their parents did, in mutual funds that they don't understand at three-to-five percent a year," Hoffman told The Action Network. "We noticed a trend of passion investing, where you are investing in something you think has potential to grow while also being something you care deeply about.
"For others, there's a hedge against inflation with the U.S having printed more money since COVID than ever before, or a gambling element where you can bet on a player early in their career. We think this paradigm shift is just getting started."
