[Rhotchkiss]

Bob, you are spot on. I actually think one could make a very lucrative business out of lending against cards, but it must be done responsibly. First, the loan-to-value (LTV), must be appropriate. 50%-60% may make sense for Ruth, Cobb, Mantle, Robinson, but not for modern. Regardless, the strength of the underlying collateral is key to setting an appropriate LTV. Second, the lender needs to underwrite each borrower and make them sign personally on the debt. This way, in the event the collateral is insufficient to cover the loan (plus accrued interest and penalties/cost) you can go after the human who should have net worth. Third, there should be a mechanism to value the collateral regularly and to require either additional collateral or pay down if the loan, if the value of the original collateral declines.

I guess we will find out in time whether there are real issues at PWCC- it will have zero impact on me and my collection. But if there is, expect a run on the Vault, SVB-style and some serious “hobby” fall out. Not fall-out in a bank way - as Nicolo pointed out, this is not cash, it’s cards and they belong to people and should all be in the vault. But fall out from PWCC having to dump all their underwater cards/collateral, further driving down the value of modern cards. And, if the vault closes, some people may need to pay major state sales tax but may not have the cash to do so, especially when they are paying tax on a card they bought for $X that is now worth 30% of $X.