What would people use as money if the world suddenly collapsed?
For venture capitalist Peter Levin, the answer is surprisingly simple: Pokémon cards.
Levin, founder and managing director of Griffin Gaming Partners, believes the collectible cards could become a form of global currency in a post-apocalyptic world. His unusual prediction has drawn attention as Pokémon cards continue to move beyond childhood collectibles and into the world of serious investing.
In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Levin said he is “absolutely convinced” that Pokémon cards would become a global currency if an apocalypse happened.
His reasoning is based on something that makes the trading-card market unusual: accessibility.
Why Peter Levin Believes Pokémon Cards Could Become Currency
Levin’s theory is built around the idea that Pokémon cards are widely recognized and relatively easy to obtain.
Unlike rare commodities or financial assets that require specialized knowledge or access, Pokémon cards can be purchased by ordinary consumers. Packs are available through major retailers and trading-card stores, giving collectors from different backgrounds a chance to participate.
Levin also points out that anyone opening a pack has the possibility of finding a valuable card.
That element of chance is an important part of his argument. A person with significant wealth and a casual collector can both purchase a pack and potentially discover something valuable.
For Levin, that creates a level of accessibility that could make Pokémon cards particularly interesting as an alternative form of value.
Levin Has a Huge Collection Himself
Levin’s prediction is not coming from someone who has only recently discovered the trading-card market.
The investor reportedly owns more than half a million Pokémon cards, making him one of the more serious collectors in the investment community.
His interest in cards reflects a broader trend in which wealthy investors, celebrities and longtime collectors have increasingly treated trading cards as alternative assets.
Some cards can sell for extraordinary amounts when they are rare, highly sought after and preserved in excellent condition.
The market has also developed professional grading services, auction houses and specialized marketplaces, making it easier for collectors to assign values to individual cards.
Pokémon Cards Have Delivered Huge Returns
One reason investors have become interested in Pokémon cards is their historical price performance.
According to Card Ladder data cited by The Wall Street Journal, Pokémon cards have generated an estimated 3,821% return since 2004.
For comparison, the S&P 500 gained about 483% over the same period.
Those numbers do not mean every Pokémon card has increased dramatically in value. The market is highly selective, and prices can vary significantly depending on rarity, condition, demand and the specific edition of a card.
Still, the performance of certain collectibles has helped convince investors that trading cards can function as an alternative asset class.
The Logan Paul Effect
The growing financial value of Pokémon cards has also been amplified by celebrities and social-media personalities.
YouTuber and entrepreneur Logan Paul became one of the most visible figures associated with the modern Pokémon investment boom.
In 2021, Paul purchased a rare Pikachu Illustrator card for approximately $5 million, setting a record at the time.
Earlier in 2026, he reportedly sold the same card for $16 million, establishing another record and generating enormous attention for the collectible-card market.
Deals like that have helped demonstrate just how high the value of rare Pokémon cards can climb.
They have also introduced the market to a younger audience that may not traditionally think of collectibles as investments.
From Childhood Hobby to Alternative Investment
Pokémon cards originally became popular as part of the broader Pokémon phenomenon that began in the 1990s.
The franchise was introduced by Nintendo in 1996 as a video-game series before expanding into television, movies, merchandise and the Pokémon Trading Card Game.
For millions of fans, collecting cards is still primarily a hobby driven by nostalgia.
However, the financial side of the market has become increasingly difficult to ignore.
Some collectors now track their portfolios much like traditional investors monitor stocks or other assets. Rare cards can be graded, stored securely and sold through specialized marketplaces.
This transformation has turned some Pokémon collections into valuable personal assets.
Could Pokémon Cards Really Replace Money?
Levin’s apocalypse prediction is obviously speculative.
In a real-world economic collapse, the things people need most would probably include food, water, medicine, fuel, shelter and other essential supplies.
A Pokémon card would not have much practical value if someone were trying to survive without basic necessities.
The strength of Levin’s argument is therefore less about the literal possibility of Pokémon cards replacing currencies and more about what makes an asset valuable.
Currency works because people agree that it has value.
In an extreme hypothetical situation, a collectible with a recognizable brand and a large community of owners could theoretically become a medium of exchange if enough people trusted it.
That is the central idea behind Levin’s prediction.
The Trading-Card Market Keeps Growing
Pokémon is also part of a much larger collectibles industry.
Analysts have estimated that the global trading-card market could be worth as much as $50 billion annually.
Other major franchises are increasingly entering the market as entertainment companies look for additional ways to monetize their characters and intellectual property.
Disney, Marvel, Star Wars, Transformers and other major properties have all become part of the modern collectible-card ecosystem through various partnerships and products.
The expansion of these franchises suggests that trading cards are no longer simply a niche hobby.
They have become a significant part of the broader entertainment and collectibles economy.
Why Scarcity Matters
One of the biggest factors behind valuable Pokémon cards is scarcity.
Not every card is rare, and most modern cards are unlikely to become multimillion-dollar investments.
The cards that command extraordinary prices tend to have unusual combinations of rarity, historical importance, condition and collector demand.
Professional grading has also become an important part of the market.
A card preserved in near-perfect condition can be worth dramatically more than the same card with visible damage.
That means collectors are not simply buying Pokémon cards. They are also buying condition, rarity and the possibility that demand will continue to grow.
A Market Built on Nostalgia
Perhaps the biggest strength of Pokémon cards is emotional rather than financial.
Pokémon has been part of several generations of childhoods. People who collected cards in the 1990s and 2000s are now adults with disposable income, while younger generations continue to discover the franchise.
That creates a powerful cycle.
Older collectors may return to the hobby because of nostalgia, while new fans enter because of video games, television shows, movies and social media.
For investors, a large and emotionally connected audience can be extremely valuable.
The Future of Pokémon as an Asset
Whether Pokémon cards ever become currency after an apocalypse is impossible to know.
But Levin’s prediction highlights how dramatically the perception of collectibles has changed.
A piece of cardboard that once cost a few dollars can, in rare circumstances, become worth thousands, millions or even more. The market now includes serious investors, professional graders, celebrities, auction houses and specialized financial analysis.
That does not make every Pokémon card a good investment, and collectible markets can be volatile.
Still, the continued popularity of Pokémon shows why Levin believes the cards could maintain value even under extraordinary circumstances.
For him, the combination of global recognition, accessibility, scarcity and nostalgia makes Pokémon cards unusually powerful collectibles.
An apocalypse may never turn Pikachu into money.
But in today’s booming collectibles market, Pokémon cards have already become something far more valuable than many people once imagined: a serious alternative asset with a global community of buyers and collectors.
