Nintendo is working with The Pokémon Company to tackle Pokémon card speculation
Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa says The Pokémon Company is continuing measures to tackle Pokémon card speculation.
The Pokémon TCG has become one of the franchise’s biggest success stories, with packs selling out almost as soon as they hit store shelves. However, it has got to such a boiling point that a shareholder asked Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa about the issue during the company’s annual general meeting, where he outlined several measures The Pokémon Company is taking to tackle speculation.
While most of the meeting was about Nintendo’s own products and games - like the upcoming release of Spatoon Raiders, Switch 2 hardware, and more, one shareholder had questions regarding how the company is working with TPC to “create an environment where customers can purchase and enjoy the products with peace of mind?”, citing issues regarding Pokémon TCG speculative bulk buying. The following comments are based on a translation of the Japanese meeting notes.
Furukawa’s response notes that “there are cases where cards produced in limited quantities are bought up for speculative purposes.” The Japanese wording refers specifically to buying limited-quantity cards with the intention of profiting from future value, rather than collecting or playing them.
The Nintendo President says the company also communicates with The Pokémon Company as necessary and discusses ways to ensure products are delivered appropriately to customers, adding that Nintendo understands The Pokémon Company will continue advancing those measures.
Furukawa also mentions these measures, one of which is the recent My Number Card verification system imposed on events and the Pokémon 30th Celebration pre-orders. He also discusses other measures the company is taking, including “made-to-order sales and agreements with marketplace operators.”
It’s not completely clear what those measures mean, but we can speculate (excuse the pun). Rather than rushing out stock for the initial launch, ‘made-to-order’, where customers place an order during a set window before products are manufactured or allocated to fulfil those orders. That reduces the chance for those buying for profit to make money from shortages, and lets customers buy with a potential guarantee.
Nintendo doesn’t elaborate on what these agreements involve, but they could include working to delist fraudulent sales pages, fake Pokémon cards, or enforcing existing policies on marketplaces more strictly.
What’s interesting is that this question was raised by a shareholder, not a journalist or collector. The issue has become so prevalent that even Nintendo is being asked about it. It’s worth noting that these answers are edited for clarity by Nintendo itself, so it may not be a verbatim transcript.
While Nintendo doesn’t manage the Pokémon TCG directly, the comments show the company is actively discussing the issue with The Pokémon Company rather than distancing itself from it.
The Pokémon Company in the West has yet to introduce strict measures like the My Number Card in Japan. The closest example we have is the vague ‘early access’ system, which as of Pitch Black’s pre-order window, has yet to be used.
