Goldin Auctions, the leading marketplace for trading cards and collectibles, secured $40 million in growth financing from The Chernin Group (TCG), an investment firm that focuses on emerging consumer businesses in the media, commerce, and technology industries.
In addition to TCG, several notable athletes, entrepreneurs and firms have joined the funding round including Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman from Thirty Five Ventures; Adam Bain and Dick Costolo from 01 Advisors; Mark Cuban; LightShed Ventures, led by Rich Greenfield; YouTube Co-founder Chad Hurley; Craft Ventures Co-Founder Bill Lee; musician and record producer Timothy “Timbaland” Mosley; Christian Oestlien, VP Product at YouTube; creator turned boxer Logan Paul; Anthony Pompliano of Pomp Investments; Shiva Rajaraman, VP Product, Facebook; Zillow and Hotwire Co-Founder Spencer Rascoff; Bill Simmons, Founder and CEO of The Ringer; Dwyane Wade of Wade Ventures; Mark Wahlberg; and NFL quarterback Deshaun Watson from Bleecker Trading.
Goldin Auctions plans to use the capital to expand its technology, operations, and audience, the company said in its press release. Founder Ken Goldin will maintain his role as Executive Chairman, but Ross Hoffman, whose resume includes senior positions at Google, Twitter, and Headspace, will join the company as its new CEO.
“Ken and his team have built an incredible business, and he is an icon in the hobby,” said Hoffman. “At the core, what they have built is trust: sellers trust us that they will get the right price, and buyers trust us that they will get authentic merchandise.”
TCG has invested in popular companies like Barstool Sports, The Action Network, Cameo, and many other businesses that have strong connections with their audience.
“At TCG, we focus on identifying high-growth sectors and then investing in the best businesses that we believe will define that category,” TCG Co-founder and Partner Jesse Jacobs said. “We noticed the explosive interest in the collectibles industry, and we went very deep looking for the best companies and executives.”
Last month, Goldin Auctions demolished the industry record for the largest sports collectibles auction ever, completing $33 million in sales for over 1,000 items. Since Ken Goldin founded Goldin Auctions in 2012, the company has overseen over $300 million in sales and recently brokered two record-breaking Michael Jordan Rookie Card Sales for $738,000 each.
