Triple B
Verified Trader,
The neverending carousel of business deals amongst hobby heavyweights continues...
SAN JOSE, CA, April 10, 2024 – eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY), a global commerce leader that connects millions of sellers and buyers around the world, and Collectors, parent company of PSA, the leading third party authentication and grading provider in the trading card industry, today announced they signed definitive agreements to enter into a series of transactions that include a commercial agreement, the sale of Goldin from Collectors to eBay, and the sale of the eBay vault from eBay to PSA. The differentiated and complementary strengths of the respective companies will support more streamlined buying, selling, grading, and storage experiences for all who participate in the trading card hobby in the United States (“The Hobby”).
eBay and PSA both have long track records of innovation in service of The Hobby, from helping people make their first trading card purchase with confidence, to supporting established small businesses and collectors with new tools and technology. These deals represent a compelling opportunity to accelerate innovation in the industry and enable game-changing benefits for collectors. Together, eBay and PSA will offer a full, seamless, customer-centric product experience for the collecting community that will be unveiled over the coming months.
“eBay is relentlessly focused on providing the best inventory and the highest level of trust for our global community,” said Jamie Iannone, CEO, eBay. “The deals announced today further our mission of reinventing the future of ecommerce for enthusiasts, and we are excited to partner with PSA to offer a simpler, more personalized experience for passionate collectors. PSA is a premier player in trading cards and collectibles with unmatched capabilities, and our shared expertise will inspire even more people to sell, shop and collect with confidence.”
“This will benefit The Hobby above all else, which is the primary goal of this innovative partnership between eBay and PSA,” said Collectors CEO Nat Turner. “We will drastically improve the collector experience by creating a seamless, end-to-end journey. No matter an individual collector’s goals, this partnership will make collecting safer, easier and more fun. We’re excited to combine the scale and trust across eBay's global marketplace with PSA's authentication and grading expertise.”
The newly established partnership will combine complementary service offerings from each brand to remove friction from The Hobby and power a sophisticated, integrated program to buy, sell, grade, and store trading cards and collectible card games. The companies remain focused on enabling The Hobby while unlocking economic opportunity for all collectors to enhance their experiences along their collecting journey.
This partnership will also extend grading services to customers in the US through a simple and streamlined process, building upon the existing confidence buyers and sellers have in PSA’s grading expertise. Additionally, PSA will introduce a new service offering to allow customers to list and sell trading cards on eBay at the time a card is graded, accelerating time-to-market and quality of listing. Existing options for grading and sale will remain available.
eBay’s agreement to acquire Goldin, a leading US-based auction house for high-value trading cards and collectibles, will enhance existing marketplace offerings by expanding the range of inventory available to customers and opening up an expansive new audience for Goldin sellers. This will enable a more well-rounded collecting experience across price points.
“We see so much opportunity ahead with eBay, and I am incredibly excited for this new chapter for the Goldin brand,” said Ken Goldin, Founder and CEO of Goldin. “This deal will enhance and expand our reach as we continue to do what we do best – source incredible collector’s items – and connect with millions of enthusiasts around the world. I am looking forward to an amazing future with eBay.”
PSA has also agreed to acquire the eBay vault, while maintaining seamless access to vault services for eBay’s U.S. customers. There will be no immediate changes to the services provided for a period of time post-closing. After deal closing, PSA will fold its existing vault services along with eBay’s vault program, into a newly branded offering with further details coming, including integrated selling and grading services.
SAN JOSE, CA, April 10, 2024 – eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY), a global commerce leader that connects millions of sellers and buyers around the world, and Collectors, parent company of PSA, the leading third party authentication and grading provider in the trading card industry, today announced they signed definitive agreements to enter into a series of transactions that include a commercial agreement, the sale of Goldin from Collectors to eBay, and the sale of the eBay vault from eBay to PSA. The differentiated and complementary strengths of the respective companies will support more streamlined buying, selling, grading, and storage experiences for all who participate in the trading card hobby in the United States (“The Hobby”).
eBay and PSA both have long track records of innovation in service of The Hobby, from helping people make their first trading card purchase with confidence, to supporting established small businesses and collectors with new tools and technology. These deals represent a compelling opportunity to accelerate innovation in the industry and enable game-changing benefits for collectors. Together, eBay and PSA will offer a full, seamless, customer-centric product experience for the collecting community that will be unveiled over the coming months.
“eBay is relentlessly focused on providing the best inventory and the highest level of trust for our global community,” said Jamie Iannone, CEO, eBay. “The deals announced today further our mission of reinventing the future of ecommerce for enthusiasts, and we are excited to partner with PSA to offer a simpler, more personalized experience for passionate collectors. PSA is a premier player in trading cards and collectibles with unmatched capabilities, and our shared expertise will inspire even more people to sell, shop and collect with confidence.”
“This will benefit The Hobby above all else, which is the primary goal of this innovative partnership between eBay and PSA,” said Collectors CEO Nat Turner. “We will drastically improve the collector experience by creating a seamless, end-to-end journey. No matter an individual collector’s goals, this partnership will make collecting safer, easier and more fun. We’re excited to combine the scale and trust across eBay's global marketplace with PSA's authentication and grading expertise.”
The newly established partnership will combine complementary service offerings from each brand to remove friction from The Hobby and power a sophisticated, integrated program to buy, sell, grade, and store trading cards and collectible card games. The companies remain focused on enabling The Hobby while unlocking economic opportunity for all collectors to enhance their experiences along their collecting journey.
This partnership will also extend grading services to customers in the US through a simple and streamlined process, building upon the existing confidence buyers and sellers have in PSA’s grading expertise. Additionally, PSA will introduce a new service offering to allow customers to list and sell trading cards on eBay at the time a card is graded, accelerating time-to-market and quality of listing. Existing options for grading and sale will remain available.
eBay’s agreement to acquire Goldin, a leading US-based auction house for high-value trading cards and collectibles, will enhance existing marketplace offerings by expanding the range of inventory available to customers and opening up an expansive new audience for Goldin sellers. This will enable a more well-rounded collecting experience across price points.
“We see so much opportunity ahead with eBay, and I am incredibly excited for this new chapter for the Goldin brand,” said Ken Goldin, Founder and CEO of Goldin. “This deal will enhance and expand our reach as we continue to do what we do best – source incredible collector’s items – and connect with millions of enthusiasts around the world. I am looking forward to an amazing future with eBay.”
PSA has also agreed to acquire the eBay vault, while maintaining seamless access to vault services for eBay’s U.S. customers. There will be no immediate changes to the services provided for a period of time post-closing. After deal closing, PSA will fold its existing vault services along with eBay’s vault program, into a newly branded offering with further details coming, including integrated selling and grading services.
