TCG Unite is the new trading card game marketplace for collectors in Asia
For many, Pokémon cards were once a childhood pastime, traded in schoolyards, battled with friends, or simply hoarded in plastic binders.
But today, these cards have made a massive comeback, not just as nostalgic collectibles, but as highly sought-after assets in a booming global trading card game (TCG) market.
Rare cards can fetch tens of thousands of dollars, collectors treat them like investments, and conventions now draw crowds numbering in the tens of thousands.
But while the United States has seen structured ecosystems and marketplaces emerge to support this resurgence, with platforms like TCGplayer and Beckett Marketplace offering reliable transactions and pricing, Asia’s TCG community is still grappling with fragmented markets, inconsistent prices, and fraud.
That gap is exactly what Singapore-based startup TCG Unite is trying to fill. As Asia’s first “all-in-one” TCG marketplace, it combines secure buying and selling, real-time pricing data, collection tracking, and integrated logistics, all within a single app designed for collectors, players, and enthusiasts across the region.
How it works
Founded by four TCG enthusiasts, TCG Unite officially went live in mid-Jul, and for now, it mainly works as a buy-and-sell marketplace.
Collectors can hop onto the app, browse listings, and purchase cards from the listed vendors. At present, there are about 40 registered sellers on the app, with more than 1,000 listed products, including popular titles like Pokémon, One Piece, Weiss Schwarz, Digimon, and Vanguard, among others.
Once a card is bought, TCG Unite handles the rest: shipping is taken care of through DHL or SingPost. There is also an option to self-collect your purchase if you prefer.
Of course, buying and selling in the TCG world isn’t without risks—scams and stolen parcels aren’t uncommon. To tackle that, TCG Unite uses an escrow system, where payment is only released once a buyer confirms the card is received in good condition.
For now, the team is working only with verified businesses and sellers with strong track records. By end-2025, the app will roll out Singpass KYC verification for all Singapore sellers to add another layer of trust.
Beyond transactions, the app also comes with tools for collectors. You can track the value of your collection by uploading your cards (the process is a little manual, but the insights are well worth the effort), and access real-time pricing data pulled from multiple sources to get a fairer sense of the market.
More than just a passing trend?
Since its launch, TCG Unite has seen encouraging traction—the app now counts around 7,000 total users, and collectively, they have added more than 50,000 cards to their digital collections.
But building the platform wasn’t an easy journey. It took TCG Unite slightly over a year of development and a six-figure investment, drawn from both the founders’ own pockets and angel investors, to finally bring the app to market.
The team also had to contend with scepticism. “When we set out to build this, people didn’t really believe we could create something of this scale in the hobby space,” said co-founder and COO Mango Teo during our sit-down at the app’s launch event.
“Most tech startups today are in medtech, fintech, or even artificial intelligence. But we saw a real opportunity in TCG.”
Yet, it might appear like the startup is simply riding the post-COVID surge in Pokémon and other TCGs. Trends can come and go—in fact, Pokémon card prices have reportedly cooled after peaking in recent months—but Mango insists the demand isn’t just a passing fad.
Beyond collectors who treat cards as investments, there’s a core base of players who keep the ecosystem alive, continually buying, trading, and updating their decks.
“Players are constantly buying and trading because tournament-legal cards change regularly,” Mango explained. “In games like Pokémon, the cards that are allowed in tournaments can shift almost every year, so decks are always evolving.”
Beyond just a one-stop TCG app
It’s this core community that shapes TCG Unite’s long-term vision. While the marketplace, where the app takes a cut from completed transactions, is currently the startup’s main offering and revenue stream, the team is also focused on building and nurturing the TCG community.
Looking ahead, expansions could include deck-building tools, smart deck suggestions, and other features that enhance gameplay, which may eventually be monetised.
And in the near to mid-term, the team plans to roll out the app in Malaysia, Indonesia, and other regional markets. But its biggest focus is on Japan, with expansion efforts already underway and a local launch planned by the end of this year.
And the reason behind this? According to Mango, Japanese cards are among the most highly sought-after in the world, yet the market has remained largely domesticated—supply stays within Japan, with limited access for overseas buyers.
TCG Unite hopes to bridge that gap by onboarding more partner stores and sellers from Japan, making these coveted cards more accessible to the global community. China is also on their radar, as the team hopes that in three to five years, it can bridge fragmented domestic markets and become the region’s leading TCG platform.
Beyond transactions, TCG Unite is also focused on connecting players, collectors, and verified sellers across Asia. As part of this effort, the startup hosts events—the launch event doubled as a trade show and drew steady crowds throughout the day.
By the end of the year, the team plans to hold additional events that will cater more directly to the community and gameplay side of TCG, even if not strictly a trade show.
Ultimately, TCG Unite aims to not just be a one-stop TCG app, but also a hub for the region’s trading card community.
- Find out more about TCG Unite here.
- Read other articles we’ve written on Singaporean businesses here.
Featured Image Credit: TCG Unite