Looking for finance expert comments on Pokemon Cards! For The Sun

Most people assume a Pokémon card is worth money because it is rare, but rarity on its own is worth nothing. A card only carries value once enough people agree that it should, and right now an awful lot of people do, which is the same mechanism that prices a watch, a signed football shirt or a cryptocurrency, (and for that matter the same mechanism that prices a pound note). None of these things are valuable for what it is made of, they are valuable for the agreement that sits behind them, and scarcity just concentrates that agreement. So when a new release pushes demand up the price responds sharply, and that is really what this week is about.

Pokémon cards are a fascinating example of what happens when nostalgia collides with scarcity and money.

The 30th anniversary could bring an entirely new wave of attention into the market. Adults who opened Pokémon packs as children now have mortgages, salaries and disposable income — and suddenly the card sitting in their childhood bedroom is not just cardboard, it is a piece of their past.

That renewed attention can drag older cards back into the spotlight and potentially push prices higher, particularly genuinely scarce cards in exceptional condition.

But collectors need to separate rarity from hype. A card being old, shiny or having Pikachu on it does not automatically make it valuable. Condition, edition, scarcity, grading and actual buyer demand matter enormously.

And I would never treat Pokémon cards like a pension or investment portfolio.

Buy collectibles because you love owning them. If Pikachu pays your mortgage one day, consider that a very profitable childhood.

For collectibles, value sits at the intersection of scarcity, condition, and demand, with demand driven by cultural relevance. A major Pokémon release puts the genre back in the spotlight, bringing back collectors and attracting new ones, some of whom inevitably turn to older cards. You then have more people chasing a limited supply of rare vintage cards. The same effect shows up in coins, watches, and art. The extreme example is the Pikachu card sold earlier in the year for $16.5m, a record for any trading card. It sounds absurd until you recognise the buyer isn't paying for cardboard, but extreme scarcity attached to one of the world's most recognisable franchises. However, nobody should assume every card is about to soar. Modern cards are printed in huge numbers, and most loft finds are worth pennies. Condition, rarity, and provenance are what matters. The paradox is that new supply often makes the old, scarce items more desirable, creating the next generation of collectors.

I've watched my children collect Pokémon cards and play the Nintendo games throughout their childhood, so I've seen first-hand how Pokémon has managed to keep people interested for years rather than simply being a short-lived craze.

A 30th anniversary release will inevitably bring attention back to the cards, including from adults who collected them as children and now have the disposable income to start collecting again.

That renewed interest could increase demand for some older cards, but I wouldn't assume every Pokémon card is suddenly going to soar in value. With collectibles, rarity, condition and what someone is actually prepared to pay matter far more than simply having an old card in a drawer.

For families who still have collections from years ago, it may be worth finding out what they have. But I'd treat any increase in value as a bonus rather than buying cards on the assumption they'll make money.