Arena Club, the trading card platform founded with backing from Derek Jeter, is getting an influx of fresh funding.
The company announced Wednesday that it had raised $10 million in a Series A round, bringing the total amount of money it has raised to $20 million. The round was led by venture capital firms including M13, defy, Lightspeed Ventures, Elysian Park Ventures, and BAM Ventures.
Arena Club launched in September, offering grading done using Artificial Intelligence, as well as a website where collectors can display their cards as well as buy and sell. In addition to Arena Club graded cards, the platform allows users to offer cards graded by SGC, PSA, Beckett and CSG.
Arena Club users have their own online “showroom” where they can buy, sell, trade and display their cards. Collectors can store graded cards in the Arena Club vault or pay a fee to have cards they acquire “retrieved” and shipped to them.
The company says the money will be used “to scale operations, attract world class talent, and meet consumers where they are in the current state of the hobby.”
Founders say they are planning to add more functionality to the platform’s marketplace.
“We are thrilled to announce this latest funding raise which will allow us to continue growing within the fast-paced sports collectible market,” said Brian Lee, Arena Club’s Co-Founder and CEO. “Our team is thankful for the group of investors – led by M13, who see the bright future of the trading card hobby and our platform.” I have long admired M13 and the value they bring to early-stage startups. We are grateful to have their support and their leadership as part of our growing Arena Club family.”
“From its AI-enabled grading process to minting cards digitally on-chain for verification and transparency, Arena Club’s trusted and seamless digital experience will vastly improve how seasoned and new collectors buy, sell, trade and display,” Reum remarked.
“Since we launched Arena Club, it has been fun to see the positive response from consumers about our platform,” Jeter stated. “Providing users with a digital card show allows us to use our first-class technology to give collectors from all over the world the luxury of being able to get the full trading card show experience at their fingertips. The future for Arena Club is bright and we have some great things ahead.”
Jeter’s specific role in the company isn’t clear. The company says only that he is “an active participant in designing new features and sharing his collecting vision.”
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