Fractional Cards Broker Collectable Snags Amplo, Bain VC Funds
Fractional sports memorabilia platform Collectable has collected $5.5 million in Series A funding, led by Amplo and its founder Sheel Tyle, an early backer of Robinhood who is joining the Collectable board of directors. Collectable was launched in September as a registered broker-dealer, selling shares in sports cards and other collectibles and offering secondary trading each weekday.
The $5.5 million round also includes participation from a trio of Boston VC firms—Bain Capital Ventures, Fifth Down Capital and Rose Park Capital—as well as New York’s Evolution VC, which has backed esports betting app Players’ Lounge. Individual investors participating in the round are Anthony and Joe Pompliano, writers of investing and sports business newsletters, respectively, former Palantir CFO Colin Anderson and LNK partner Jeff Pearlman.
“It’s a combination of investors who are familiar with the collectibles market and ones who are familiar with companies who are innovating categories and certain technology financial firms, as well,” said Collectable CEO Ezra Levine in a phone call. “It’s a nice blend of what we feel is our true intersection.”
Collectable has completed 100 IPOs, totaling about $20 million in value since September. The business has 35,000 users who, on average, participate in six offerings, indicating the idea has a level of stickiness with consumers VCs wish to see, according to Levine. Typically, the company takes consignment from memorabilia owners who often retain partial ownership. Collectable markets the equity being sold through offerings registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission, making money from fees that run roughly half of traditional auction houses. The business currently has $50 million in inventory under consignment that it plans to roll out in coming months.
The venture capital funding will help the business increase its efforts to earn more users and produce related content, according to Levine. “The goal is to take this capital, build out ancillary products, acquire more users, delve deep into content and analytics and research in the marketplace, and then sprint towards a much larger Series B,” explained Levine. “Effectively just providing investors and collectors on our platform with the information, knowledge and data to make informed choices.” The valuation of the business through the round isn’t being publicly disclosed.
The global collectibles market is roughly estimated to be around $400 billion and interest has grown sizably over the past year, with other collectibles trading platforms also pulling in venture capital funding of late. In February, Mets owner Steve Cohen led a group to take Collectors Universe private in a deal valuing that business at $70 million, while Topps owner Michael Eisner has a deal to take the trading card maker public through a SPAC at a valuation of $1.3 billion.
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