eBay will lock your valuable trading-card collection in the Vault

The Future. eBay is pulling back the curtain on eBay Vault — a literal vault where higher-priced trading cards can be stored for safekeeping and sold at auction without the hassle of shopping. The Vault coincides with cards rising to the status of bonafide asset class, and they could become so expensive and in-demand that eBay may even introduce fractional ownership (like Rares is doing with sneakers) — a move that would transform the company from a marketplace to an investment platform.

Complimentary security
After you buy a sports card from eBay, the best place to keep it may be… at eBay.

• Fast Company reports that the e-resale company is introducing eBay Vault — a 31,000 square-foot, climate-controlled facility in Delaware where customers can store their cards.
• Any cards sold on eBay for $750 (or more) can be stored in the Vault for free, where they are authenticated, insured, and digitally imaged, so you can see them whenever you want.

With just a few clicks, card owners can sell the cards on eBay while they’re stored at the facility… where the new owners can continue storing them (think of it as StockX’s VaultNFTs for trading cards), eliminating the need for unnecessary shipping.

Million-dollar rookie (card)
While stocks were taken for a ride during the pandemic, alternative investments like sports cards and memorabilia have surged in popularity. That boom has been driven by the rise in NFTs, giving something as old-school as trading cards an upgrade and minting a new generation of collectors… and investors.

Some high-net-worth customers are already getting invited to store their collections in the Vault. Millionaire collector Rick Probstein (probstein123 on eBay) says his cards were transferred by eBay via an armored vehicle.

That leaves us with one pressing question: could the next great heist be for sports cards?