Pokémon TCG Pocket Trading Has Spurred a Strange Black Market for High Rarity Cards

Pokémon TCG Pocket's controversial trading system fuels a thriving black market for digital cards. Numerous eBay listings offer Pokémon TCG Pocket cards for $5-$10 each, exploiting a loophole in the game's trading mechanics. Sellers exchange friend codes with buyers, trading a card of equal rarity (often an "unwanted" ex Pokémon) for the desired card, effectively profiting without losing inventory.

This practice directly violates Pokémon TCG Pocket's terms of service, prohibiting the buying and selling of virtual items. However, the system's design inadvertently enables this behavior. One listing, for example, advertises a Starmie ex for $5.99, requiring buyers to possess 500 Trade Tokens, Trade Stamina, and an unwanted ex Pokémon for the exchange.

The rarity restriction—only cards of the same rarity can be traded—is key to the exploit. Sellers can repeatedly acquire and sell rare cards like ex Pokémon and 1-Star alternate art cards, generating profit without depleting their stock. Entire accounts, containing valuable Pack Hourglasses and rare cards, are also being sold on eBay, a common occurrence in online games regardless of terms of service violations.

The trading mechanic itself sparked controversy upon its release. Beyond the existing restrictions on pack openings and Wonder Picking (limited without real-money spending), the introduction of Trade Tokens further fueled player frustration. The high cost of obtaining Trade Tokens—requiring the deletion of five cards to trade one of equal rarity—was heavily criticized.

Even without the Trade Token system, a black market likely would have emerged due to the trading mechanic's limitations. The inability to publicly list cards for trade within the app forces players to use external platforms like Reddit, Discord, and now eBay. Many players, like Reddit user siraquakip, desired a more integrated community trading system within the app itself.

Every Alternate Art 'Secret' Card in Pokémon TCG Pocket: Space Time Smackdown

52 Images

Developer Creatures Inc. has warned against real-money transactions and other forms of cheating, threatening account suspensions for violations. Ironically, the Trade Token system, designed to prevent exploitation, has instead fueled this black market and alienated a significant portion of the player base.

Creatures Inc. is "actively investigating" improvements to the trading feature, but concrete solutions remain elusive despite complaints dating back three weeks. Speculation suggests that the trading system's limitations, particularly the inability to trade 2-Star or higher rarity cards, are designed to incentivize in-app purchases. The game's estimated half-billion-dollar revenue in under three months, prior to the trading feature's launch, further fuels this suspicion. One player reportedly spent $1,500 to complete a single set, highlighting the significant financial investment required to obtain high-rarity cards without the ability to readily trade for them. A third set was released last week.

Did you spend money on Pokémon TCG Pocket in January 2025?

YesNoAnswerSee Results