Rally, a pioneer in fractionalized sports collectible investments, raised $30 million in Series B funding led by VC firm Accel, one of the early backers of Facebook.  

Due to the growing popularity of collectibles — estimates put the industry’s value at around $6 billion — Rally saw more participation across its platform in Q1 2021 than in all of 2020 combined, a 575% increase compared to the same period a year before. 

How the app works: 

• Rally acquires one-of-a-kind items — like the game-worn sneakers gifted to LeBron James by Kobe Bryant that it bought for $156,000 in February.
• From there, the collectible is split into shares.
• The shares are offered to Rally users as equity investments.

Another plus? It’s safe. After a fight broke out in a Target parking lot over collectibles, the retailer halted all sales of MLB, NFL, NBA, and Pokémon trading cards. 

Rally has now raised more than $50 million from investors that include Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian and Grammy-winning rapper Nas. 

Ohanian is an established investor in collectibles, helping NFT marketplace Sorare raise $50 million through his VC firm, Seven Seven Six. Nas recently invested in Underdog Fantasy through his VC firm, QueensBridge Venture Partners.

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