What if the two leading TPG Companies were to merge?

Bear

Would it be better or worse for the hobby?

Bajajim

Very hard to tell. Without competition I wonder if the grading standards would slip.

coinsomniac

Worse. For my money we only have two dependable graders, and the second one is suspect on certain issues.

Blackhawk

They would need bigger slabs to put all the letters of the abbreviated name on the holder.

Doogy

<< <i>Worse. For my money we only have two dependable graders, and the second one is suspect on certain issues. >>



both are suspect on quite a few things; don't know which one you mean by "second" but PCGS is seen as the market leader in US coins while NGC is the market leader in everything else (world coins). NGC has been lamented as having problems grading some US issues, and the same is said for PCGS grading certain world coins (mis-attribution, etc.). to me, it seems like NGC kinda' misses the boat on AU grades, and as for my world coins, we'll i've crossed all of my PCGS coins over to NGC for the same type issues. neither service is perfect.

Zoins

My question would be who would be buying whom? I want to know so I'd know which message board policies would rule the day

GoldenEyeNumismatics

An interesting concept, but I doubt it would happen.

IMHO, without competition, grading might actually tighten.

RedTiger

It would be a net negative. If they did it, they might keep both brands, though both are owned by the same company. A lot of industries are dominated by very few players with several different labels. It could happen if the revenue stream from submissions continues its decline. If the U. S. mint turns off the new design spigot, that would be a major hit to revenues.

ricko

Redtiger, what you have said is true... however, I have found that businesses, when faced with falling revenue streams, usually come up with new products/services/options. If I were running a TPG, I would have several already mapped... very much like the computer business or the memory chip business etc... Maybe even another 'certification service'... a specialization - yeah, that's it. And all the sheep will flock to the attraction. Cheers, RickO