The Stock Market vs. Bitcoin, Fine Art, and Trading Cards
Bang! Went the gavel at Sotheby's auction house on May 18, 2017. It was a historic night. Untitled, a painting by Jean-Michel Basquiat, had just sold for $110.5 million -- a new record for the most expensive artwork by an American artist.
The COVID-19 pandemic dampened fine art sales, but the industry is coming back. Just two weeks ago, a lesser-known Basquiat painting, Warrior, sold for $41.9 million. Fine art has been a reliable asset class for centuries. Limited supply is a powerful thing. And in the minds of many, the best works are priceless.
In fact, buying the best of any asset class tends to be a home run. In January, a Mickey Mantle baseball rookie card sold for a staggering $5.2 million. First-edition Pokémon cards from the late 1990s have seen their values surge -- with some up tenfold in the last few years. In late 2020, a first-edition holographic Charizard Pokémon card in mint condition sold for $360,000.
Source Fool.com
