Logan Paul’s Pikachu Illustrator sold at auction for $16.492 million on February 16, 2026, including the buyer’s premium. The “scam” accusations that followed focused on a separate, earlier Liquid Marketplace fractional-ownership offer—not on evidence that the auction was fraudulent. In a later legal decision, Ontario’s Capital Markets Tribunal found fraud by Liquid Marketplace and two co-founders in their dealings with token purchasers; it did not find Logan Paul liable.
What sold, and for how much?
Guinness World Records says Paul’s Pikachu Illustrator sold through Goldin Auctions on February 16, 2026, for a final total of $16,492,000, including the buyer’s premium. The auction set a record for the most expensive trading card sold at auction. Contemporary reporting separately put the winning bid at about $13.3 million; that bid is not the same as the final total with the premium.
| Figure | What it refers to |
|---|---|
| $5,275,000 | Paul’s reported purchase price for the card in 2021, according to Guinness World Records. |
| About $13.3 million | The winning bid, as reported contemporaneously; this is before the buyer’s premium reflected in the final total. |
| $16,492,000 | The final February 2026 auction total, including the buyer’s premium, according to Guinness World Records. |
Why is the Pikachu Illustrator card so rare?
The card was created for a 1998 illustration contest and designed by Atsuko Nishida, the Associated Press reported. Only a few dozen copies are believed to exist, an estimate rather than a precise census.
The auctioned card’s grade is a separate part of its rarity: it received a PSA Gem Mint 10 grade. Guinness identifies it as the only known copy at that grade. That does not mean it is the only Pikachu Illustrator card in existence.
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At the auction, Paul reacted, “Oh my gosh, this is crazy,” the Associated Press reported.
What were the Logan Paul scam accusations about?
Before the auction, Paul had promoted offering a share of the card through Liquid Marketplace, a platform that sold tokens it described as fractional ownership of collectibles. After the sale, social-media users questioned whether people who had bought tokens connected to the card would participate in its proceeds, and raised concerns about access to money on the platform. Those questions concerned the earlier fractional-ownership offer, not the validity of the Goldin auction.
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Protos reported that Paul said he had repurchased the card from Liquid Marketplace and had paid to restore withdrawals. Those are statements attributed to Paul; available reporting does not establish whether particular users recovered funds or received any share of the auction proceeds.
What did Ontario’s Tribunal find about Liquid Marketplace?
On September 30, 2026, the Ontario Capital Markets Tribunal issued its merits decision in the Ontario Securities Commission proceeding against Liquid Marketplace Inc., Liquid Marketplace Corp., Ryan Bahadori, Amin Nikdel, and Dennis Domazet. The Tribunal found that the tokens and related rights were investment contracts. It also found that the companies traded securities without registration, sold them without a prospectus, and operated a marketplace without the required approval.
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The Tribunal found that Liquid Marketplace and co-founders Bahadori and Nikdel committed fraud. Its findings concern those companies and individuals and the platform’s dealings with token purchasers. Logan Paul was not a respondent in the proceeding, and the Tribunal summary does not say that it found him liable.
What purchasers were told, and what the Tribunal found
| Representation to purchasers | Tribunal’s finding |
|---|---|
| Tokens provided legal ownership interests in collectibles. | Most collectibles were not covered by listing agreements, contrary to the claimed ownership arrangement. |
| Tokens could be transferred on Ethereum. | Ownership was recorded only on the platform’s internal system, and purchasers could not transfer tokens to their own digital wallets. |
| Collectibles were authenticated, fairly valued, securely stored, and insured. | The Tribunal found those statements false. |
The Tribunal did not find Domazet responsible for the fraud, and did not find that Bahadori or Domazet misled the Ontario Securities Commission. A separate hearing on sanctions and costs was still forthcoming in the decision summary.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the auction does—and does not—establish
The auction establishes a record sale price for this particular PSA Gem Mint 10 card. It does not by itself establish what any Liquid Marketplace token holder was entitled to receive or whether an individual user recovered funds. The Tribunal’s fraud findings address the platform and named respondents’ dealings with token purchasers; they are not a finding that the auction itself was fraudulent.
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