Collecting shiny cards has stopped being a simple hobby to become one of the world’s most profitable and dangerous businesses. With million-dollar thefts and brutal hoarding, the government of Japan decided it’s enough. Legislators from the Liberal Democratic Party are about to launch a dedicated parliamentary group to directly intervene in the massive collectible card industry, aiming to definitively stop the mafias that have kidnapped this market.

If you ever tried buying Pokémon or Yu-Gi-Oh! booster packs at retail price and failed miserably, you know exactly what we’re talking about. What was once a calm hobby for the community is now fertile ground for scams and aggressive speculation. With absolute gems like the legendary Pikachu Illustrator card selling for over sixteen million dollars, criminals haven’t wasted time. Just in recent months, we saw absurd cases like two brothers stealing almost $100,000 worth of merchandise, or a free event in South Korea being canceled due to an uncontrollable rush of 40,000 desperate attendees.

To understand the gravity of the issue, this market moved over 338 billion yen during 2025. In their first major meeting scheduled for July 23, authorities will seek to implement strict rules to combat bulk purchases, money laundering, and the distribution of counterfeits that plague giant franchises in the industry. In fact, The Pokémon Company has already anticipated this crackdown, recently announcing plans to require government-issued IDs to sell its most coveted products and ensure they reach true fans.

With getting a simple pack of cards becoming nearly impossible for the average consumer, do you think Japan’s government intervention will finally end the plague of resellers, or will speculators find new ways to bypass the legal system?