A rare Pokémon card featuring one of the world’s most recognizable characters sold for $3.3 million in a private sale, setting a record for the highest price paid for any card certified by Florida-based grading company CGC.
According to a news release, the 1996 Japanese CoroCoro Comics Pikachu Glossy - Marketing Variation -- commonly referred to as the “Ivy Pikachu” -- was graded 8.5 by CGC.
The $3.3 million sale tops the previous record for a CGC-certified card, the news release stated. That was a Magic: The Gathering Alpha Black Lotus card, which earned a gem-mint grade of 10.0 and sold for $3 million in 2024.
According to CGC Cards, the Ivy Pikachu was one of the first trading card game offerings that were released to the public in a 1996 issue of CoroCoro Comic. The card was released five days before the official release of the Japanese base set, along with a Jigglypuff promotional card.
The card sold by CGC is the higher-graded of the two cards certified by the grading company, according to the news release. The other card came back with a grade of 8.0.
The record-setting Ivy Pikachu card was created as the first of five known variations of the card, according to CGC.
The Marketing Variation features a distinctive pair of ivy leaves beneath Pikachu’s left foot, with the electric mouse positioned slightly to the right -- rather than centered -- in the card front’s artwork. The card also correctly credits illustrator Keiji Kinebuchi.
The other variations are Glossy-Incorrect Illustrator, Glossy-Corrected Illustrator, Glossy-Gray Star and Non-Glossy.
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