Gathering 120 Exhibitors from Home and Abroad on Display with Over 23,000 Card Enthusiasts Expected to Join
International Collectors: Hong Kong Absolutely Has the Conditions to Become Asia's Trading Card Hub
22 November 2025, Hong Kong - Hong Kong's largest trading card event, "Grade10 Festival," opened today with great fanfare at the Grand Ballroom of Hopewell Hotel in Wan Chai. The two-day exhibition is anticipated to draw over 23,000 attendees. Making its global debut is the "Van Gogh-Pikachu" card wall, an extraordinary display featuring over 400 "Pikachu with Grey Felt Hat" cards graded PSA 10, valued close to HK$5 million. This edition marks the largest scale in the event's history, bringing together over 120 exhibitors from around the world. Adding to the prestige, renowned international collector Nick Uliano has travelled specially from the United States to participate, further cementing Hong Kong's status as a pivotal hub in the global trading card market. The event also features the world's first "Threads Wall," a collaboration with Meta's Threads, enabling real-time interactive sharing with participants.
The opening ceremony was graced by prominent figures, including The Honourable Bernard Charnwut Chan, Chairman of Our Hong Kong Foundation; Ray Chan, Chief Executive Officer of MemeStrategy (stock code: 2440.HK); Carvin Chan, Managing Director of Grade10; and Will Li, Director of Exhibitions and Digital Business at the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. Supporting partners and advisors present at the ceremony included Alex Fong, Artist and Athlete; Wesley Ng, Co-Founder of CASETiFY; Kun Gao, Co-Founder of Crunchyroll, which is the United States' largest Japanese anime streaming platform; Hanru Tang, Founder of PokeColor; and Grade10's partners like Jerry Lam and Ander Tsui, amongst others.
Ray Chan expressed: "MemeStrategy's investment in Grade10 and our decision to base the brand in Hong Kong, reflects our confidence in Hong Kong's potential to emerge as Asia's premier trading card centre. The city already possesses all the necessary conditions to stand out, from the calibre of collectors and numbers or its collectors to its transaction volumes and card diversity, all supported by a robust infrastructure. Historically, major card exhibitions have been Western-dominated. Grade10 aims to change that. We will actively expand across Asia with the ambition to establish a new international cultural event centred in the region. Our debut of 'Van Gogh-Pikachu' card wall sends a clear message to the global community: Hong Kong is a thriving collector base and is a magnet for the world's rarest cards. As an international wealth management hub, the city is home to a substantial number of affluent collectors, and with the recent surge of Millennial and Generation Z enthusiasts, the foundation for growth is stronger than ever. Grade10 is committed to building a pan-Asian trading card collector network that will solidify Hong Kong's position as the undisputed hub for trading card exchange and transactions in Asia."
The centrepiece of the venue is the "Van Gogh-Pikachu" card wall, comprising over 400 "Pikachu with Grey Felt Hat" cards graded PSA 10. This card was released as a limited-edition promotional card when Pokémon partnered with the Van Gogh Museum in the Netherlands in 2023 to celebrate the museum's 50th anniversary. The card design is inspired by Van Gogh's iconic self-portrait "Self-Portrait with Grey Felt Hat," reimagined with Pikachu wearing the grey felt hat. Upon its release, it caused a sensation and has become one of the most iconic cards in the Pokémon trading card pantheon. Festival-goers have the chance to win two of these extraordinary "Pikachu with Grey Felt Hat" cards by participating in games on-site or by excelling in quizzes.