Rares

Rares was a US-centric fractional collectibles platform — initially focused on rare sneakers — co-founded by Gerome Sapp and Matthew Hall. It raised a reported $4.0M Series Seed in October 2021 and a total of c.$5.2M by April 2022. Investors could buy fractional shares during an IPO-style window and trade them on a secondary market while the platform was active.

Rares has ceased supporting new investments and refunded existing investor balances to wallets or linked bank accounts. There is no UK FCA authorisation in the firm's own name; UK investors had no FSCS or FOS recourse and the SEC qualification used for US offerings does not extend UK regulatory protection.

Rares acquired high-value collectibles (notably rare sneakers such as a Nike Air Force 1 HOV and a 2008 Air Yeezy 1 prototype), securitised each asset under US filings and offered fractional shares to retail investors via an IPO-style window. Holders had a proportionate economic interest in the underlying asset and could trade shares on the in-platform secondary market while the platform was operational.

So what this means: liquidity, custody and disclosure depended entirely on the platform remaining in business — a dependency that has now crystallised, leaving prospective investors with no live route to participate.

Historically: fractional, securitised shares in authenticated rare sneakers and similar collectibles, with a platform-operated secondary market and low entry minimums. There is no evidence Rares ever offered UK tax wrappers such as an IFISA or SIPP.

Because the platform has ceased operations, current fee schedules, minimums, AUM and default/performance data are not available for prospective investors. The platform has notified users that unclaimed wallet balances may eventually be treated as unclaimed property and transferred to state authorities.

While operational, Rares targeted sneaker enthusiasts and collectors seeking financial exposure to the rare-sneaker market, plus alternative-asset investors looking for non-correlated returns. UK retail investors should treat this profile as historical reference only — there is no current investment route, and the collectible sneaker market remains speculative, illiquid and culturally driven.