Economic Value Creation in the Pokémon Card Market: The Effects of Scarcity, Trading Behaviour, and Speculative Investment on Price Appreciation

Abstract: The rapid expansion of the Pokémon trading card market has transformed collectible cards from recreational products into alternative assets with substantial economic value. This study examines the effects of scarcity, trading behaviour, and speculative investment on price appreciation in the Pokémon card market. A quantitative, cross-sectional research design was adopted, involving 550 Pokémon card collectors, traders, and investors, comprising 350 female (63.6%) and 200 male (36.4%) respondents. Data were measured using a five-point Likert-scale questionnaire and analysed through descriptive statistics, Cronbach’s alpha reliability analysis, Pearson correlation, and multiple regression. The analytical illustration demonstrates satisfactory construct reliability, with Cronbach’s alpha values ranging from 0.837 to 0.855. Positive relationships were observed between price appreciation and scarcity (r = 0.471), speculative investment (r = 0.442), and trading behaviour (r = 0.425). The regression model explained approximately 50.6% of the variance in price appreciation (R² = 0.506), with scarcity showing the strongest association (β = 0.367), followed by speculative investment (β = 0.303) and trading behaviour (β = 0.289). The findings illustrate how limited availability, active market participation, and expectations of future financial gains may jointly contribute to economic value creation within collectible markets. The study contributes to the emerging literature on collectible assets by integrating scarcity economics, behavioural trading, and speculative investment within a unified framework for understanding Pokémon card price appreciation. Because the statistical results are based on a simulated analytical dataset, the findings should be interpreted as an illustration of the proposed empirical model rather than evidence derived from actual respondent-level observations.

Keywords: Pokémon Cards; Economic Value Creation; Scarcity; Trading Behaviour; Speculative Investment; Price Appreciation; Collectible Assets; Behavioural Finance.