Pokémon's 30th Anniversary: MemeStrategy (HKEX:2440) Launches World's First Tokenized Collectible Card Fund

The Fund is designed to offer professional investors institutional-level access to the collectible trading card market through EVIDENT Platform Services Limited ("EVIDENT"), a licensed alternative asset digital investment platform, marking a significant step in establishing trading cards as a recognized alternative asset class. Scheduled to launch during the 30^th anniversary of the Pokémon franchise, the Fund represents a unique initiative that bridges culturally iconic collectibles with traditional institutional-level financial services.

A Booming, Multi-Billion Dollar Market

This February, a PSA 10 "Pikachu Illustrator" card, widely regarded as the holy grail of Pokémon cards and previously owned by internationally renowned influencer Logan Paul, achieved a record-breaking auction price of USD 16.492 million (approximately HKD 128 million). This sale surpassed the previous record for the most expensive sports card, the one-of-one dual-signed Logoman card featuring NBA legends Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. The event brought the global spotlight back onto collectible cards and underscored the growing cultural and collector interest in high-end trading cards.

The global collectibles market is projected to reach USD 628 billion by 2031, with the Asia Pacific region demonstrating particularly rapid growth momentum.[1] Within this market, the collectible card games segment is expected to reach USD 37.42 billion by 2034, rising from a projected USD 14.7 billion in 2025.[2] This expansion is driven by increased participation from digital native consumers and heightened institutional attention towards alternative assets. This surge also reflects a broader cultural shift among younger generations, who are increasingly engaging and investing in alternative cultural assets.

Among trading cards, Pokémon cards hold a distinguished position in the collector community. They are viewed not merely as game cards, but also as culturally significant assets supported by active secondary markets and well-established collectible value. According to reports from The Wall Street Journal and historical data from the authoritative platform CARD LADDER[3], Pokémon card values have exhibited long-term appreciation of more than 30x over the past 20 years, reinforcing their status as a resilient alternative asset class.

Crossing the Chasm, Moving Towards Institutional-Level Collection Investment

Although the trading card market presents substantial growth, direct participation by professional and institutional investors has historically been limited due to several structural challenges, including:

1. Authentication Risks: Concerns over asset provenance and widespread presence of counterfeits remain major deterrents for institutional-grade capital.
2. Custody Complexities: The high cost and operational difficulty of museum-grade physical storage, including security, insurance and climate-controlled facilities, make proper custody prohibitively expensive and operationally burdensome.
3. Market Fragmentation: A highly fragmented secondary market, dispersed inventory, and inconsistent sourcing channels make it difficult to acquire curated collections in bulk from reliable counterparties.

In view of this, MemeStrategy aims to deliver a comprehensive, institutional-ready one-stop solution. By launching the Fund through a publicly listed company platform and partnering with a licensed alternative asset digital investment platform, vault custodians supported by a professional third-party, and independent auditors and certifiers, MemeStrategy seeks to establish a robust, transparent, and institutional-level framework for professional investors to access the emerging cultural-asset market.

"Pikachu with Grey Felt Hat": A Flagship Cultural Asset with Institutional Provenance

The Fund's portfolio is anchored around a leading Pokémon card: the PSA 10 "Pikachu with Grey Felt Hat" card. Created through an official cross‑disciplinary collaboration between The Pokémon Company and the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, the card draws inspiration from Van Gogh's iconic "Self‑Portrait with Grey Felt Hat." It represents a rare convergence of the world's highest-grossing entertainment franchise and a globally renowned fine art institution.

Widely recognized as one of the most prominent Pokémon cards worldwide, the PSA 10 "Pikachu with Grey Felt Hat" is estimated to have a total market capitalization of over USD 94 million.

In light of its prominence and established market status, the Fund aims to acquire exposure representing approximately 25% of the PSA10 "Pikachu with Grey Felt Hat" cards currently available in the market, underscoring its strategic focus on this key asset. This positioning is supported by the following characteristics:

• Appreciation: Secondary market prices for the card have risen more than 400% since its limited release in late 2023, based on publicly available historical data[4].
• Scarcity: The Pokémon–museum collaboration was a time-limited initiative that concluded earlier than planned due to overwhelming demand. With a PSA 10 population of approximately 47,000[5] cards now permanently capped, its rarity is firmly established.
• Authenticity and Grade Assurance: All cards held by the Fund undergo expert verification and are PSA 10 graded, consistent with market-recognized standards for condition and authenticity.

An Institutional-Level Infrastructure for a New Asset Class

Building on its focus on flagship cultural assets, MemeStrategy complements the Fund's portfolio construction with an institutional-grade operational framework. By partnering with EVIDENT, a licensed alternative asset digital investment platform through which tokenized interests in the Fund will be made available for professional investors, MemeStrategy aims to provide a secure, transparent and robust structure for accessing cultural-asset investment.

• Institutional-Level Custody: All physical cards are authenticated, insured, and stored in a museum-grade environment with temperature control and 24-hour surveillance, operated by Grade10 Vault, the Company's professional card-vaulting service.
• Enhanced Accessibility: Tokenization facilitates primary transactions on a licensed and secure platform, enabling professional investors to access tokenized interests in the Fund with greater efficiency and transparency.
• Independent Audits: All underlying assets are subject to biannual Proof-of-Reserve audits by Deloitte or another Big4 international audit firm, ensuring full transparency and independent verification of asset holdings.

Ray Chan, Chief Executive Officer of MemeStrategy, said, "This initiative is about harnessing the distinctive market dynamics of cultural assets through institutional-level financial rigor. The collectibles market is expanding rapidly, yet institutional participation has remained limited due to logistical and security barriers. We are solving that problem. For the first time, we are providing a convenient and secure structure that allows professional investors to engage in this growing market without the burdens of physical ownership. This reflects our core mission to bridge culture and capital by creating accessible structures for the professional market."

Florian M. Spiegl, Founder & CEO of EVIDENT, said, "Collectibles represent one of the most compelling frontiers in alternative assets — a market with proven performance but, until now, without the infrastructure to serve institutional capital. This fund demonstrates exactly what EVIDENT's platform is built to do: take high-conviction asset verticals and structure them to the highest regulatory and institutional-grade standards. From custody to compliance to secondary liquidity, every layer is designed for professional investors. As we continue to expand our asset base into new verticals, the standard remains the same: institutional rigor, full regulatory compliance, and market infrastructure that investors can trust."

MemeStrategy will serve as the General Partner (GP) through its wholly owned subsidiary, RWA Labs Limited, and will also make a strategic investment as a Limited Partner (LP), reflecting its strong conviction in the long-term cultural significance and market relevance of cultural collectibles. By combining blockchain-enabled transparency with institutional-level real-world custodianship, MemeStrategy aims to help shape the evolution of how collectibles are valued and traded in the Web3 era, contributing to the development of a structured cultural-finance landscape.

Disclaimer: This announcement is for informational purposes only and does not constitute an offer or invitation to the public in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("HKSAR") to invest in the Fund or to acquire or subscribe for any securities or interests in any collective investment scheme. The Fund has not been authorized by the Securities and Futures Commission of HKSAR and is only available to "professional investors" (as defined in section 1 of Part 1 of Schedule 1 to the Securities and Futures Ordinance (Cap. 571)). This announcement is not intended for distribution to, or use by, any person in any jurisdiction where such distribution or use would be contrary to local law or regulation.


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About MemeStrategy

MemeStrategy (HKEX: 2440) is Asia's publicly listed digital asset venture, managed by the team behind 9GAG, a globally acclaimed meme platform with over 200 million users. Leveraging its social media and Web3 expertise, MemeStrategy adopts a people-first approach to strategically invest in three key growth pillars: Artificial Intelligence (AI), Blockchain, and Culture, aiming to bridge the new economy with traditional finance and accelerate the development of decentralized technologies.