Mercari shares rose more than 4% on Friday, extending its recovery from a sell-off triggered by Japanese online marketplace restrictions on Pokémon’s 30th anniversary merchandise listings announced Tuesday. The company said the restrictions would remain in place as long as it determines that a safe business environment cannot be guaranteed. Its shares closed 6.4% lower on Wednesday, the day the restrictions took effect, before recovering to close 1.4% higher on Thursday. The stock also outperformed the Nikkei 225 on Friday morning, which was up about 1%. Mercari said it imposed the temporary trading ban over concerns that a surge in transactions following the launch of the anniversary products could lead to trade disputes, as well as harassment of users involved in the transactions. Citibank attributed Wednesday’s more than 6% drop to Mercari’s announcement of restrictions on the trading of Pokémon cards. He said Mercari’s recent share price weakness had driven the stock to “overly bearish levels,” calling the stock “oversold” and the pullback an investment opportunity. Growth in the value of goods sold on the Mercari marketplace in the second half of fiscal 2026 exceeded expectations, while a recovery in multiple categories could support double-digit growth, the bank added. Citi also said the disruption to trading in certain products was negative for Mercari, but said the impact was not significant enough for the bank to revise its forecasts. The restrictions come amid a global boom in Pokémon cards. Online marketplace eBay said “Pokémon” was searched more than six million times on its UK site in July, underscoring continued demand for trading cards. Pokémon card prices have increased 1,350% since 2020, according to an index compiled by Collectors, owner of card grading agency Professional Sports Authenticator, CNBC previously reported. In February, influencer Logan Paul sold a rare Pikachu Illustrator card for over $16 million, after purchasing it for just over $5 million in 2021. New cards can sell out in a matter of minutes, and people coordinate on X and Discord to know where to go. A post on X this month claimed that a Pokémon card sold for $2.7 million at auction, setting a record. Mercari signed an agreement with The Pokémon Company in 2023 to promote safer trading of Pokémon products in its market and introduced a policy in 2025 that will allow it to restrict listings when issues such as fraud, transaction disputes, or extreme price changes threaten market security.
