ebay finds that PWCC engaged in shill bidding?

[MattyC]

That was not a theory I posted. I was just asking a rhetorical question, to underscore how it is hard to blame any seller or AH for what may be fraudulent transactions carried out by a card's owner.

That said, especially with extremely rare cards that transact infrequently, an outlier sale can sometimes move the market. If enough buyers, and sometimes it can just be one or two, choose to interpret an outlier as a sign that a heretofore undervalued or under-appreciated card may be getting its time in the sun, the outlier make "take" and affect the next sale.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by MattyC

That was not a theory I posted. I was just asking a rhetorical question, to underscore how it is hard to blame any seller or AH for what may be fraudulent transactions carried out by a card's owner.

That said, especially with extremely rare cards that transact infrequently, an outlier sale can sometimes move the market. If enough buyers, and sometimes it can just be one or two, choose to interpret an outlier as a sign that a heretofore undervalued or under-appreciated card may be getting its time in the sun, the outlier make "take" and affect the next sale.

FOMO is potent stuff.

[MattyC]

Indeed it is, Peter. And sometimes one can act on it and get ahead of a trend. For example, when I sold my Gehrig RC to a member here, I sold it for a then-record of 17k. I had paid 3k and thought it was a good move, as I don't like oversized cards. Some may have seen that one sale and thought it was a sign of things to come for that card— and they would have been right to act on that outlier and grab one.