SGC's speed advantage erodes under Collectors ownership

SGC's argument was never that it graded more strictly than PSA. It was that it was cheaper and faster, and that combination is what moved cards through it. Both halves of that argument have now weakened at once.

The expedited tier is the clearest tell. A move from $40 to $150 is not an inflation adjustment; it is a decision that fast service should be priced as a premium product rather than as the default. Standard stretching to roughly 40 business days does the same thing from the other end.

None of this makes SGC a bad grader. It makes the reason for choosing it a year ago no longer a reason today, which is a different and easier mistake to make — reputations outlive the conditions that earned them, and SGC's is currently running ahead of its service.