About Heritage Auctions

Steve Ivy started his business in 1964 at the age of 14, advertising rare coins for sale in national publications. Six years later, at the age of 20, he incorporated and opened his business in a downtown Dallas high rise. In 1976, he incorporated a sister auction company. Steve managed the business as well as serving as chief buyer, buying and selling hundreds of millions of dollars of coins during the 1970’s and early 1980’s.  

In 1982, James Halperin merged his company with Steve’s, and the name of the corporation was changed to Heritage. Steve’s primary responsibilities now include management of the marketing and selling efforts of the company, the formation of corporate policy for long-term growth, and corporate relations with financial institutions. He remains intimately involved in all 50+ categories Heritage deals in today. Steve engages in daily discourse with industry leaders on all aspects of the fine art and collectibles business, and his views on market trends and developments are respected throughout the industry. He previously served on both the Board of Directors of the Professional Numismatists Guild (past President), and The Industry Council for Tangible Assets (past Chairman). Steve’s keen appreciation of history is reflected in his active participation in other organizations, including past board positions on the Texas Historical Foundation and the Dallas Historical Society. Steve is an avid collector of Texas books and manuscripts and owns one of the finest collections in private hands.   Steve is a past Board Chair of Dallas Challenge and is also the former Finance Chair of the Phoenix House of Texas. Phoenix House and its affiliates are collectively the largest nonprofit alcohol and drug abuse treatment and prevention facility in the nation. Steve now serves as a board member of the Rosenthal Center, an organization whose mission is to meet the informational needs of those grappling with addiction, of behavioral healthcare professionals in the treatment field, and of those policymakers whose decisions determine availability of and access to clinical and social services for the victims of addiction.   Steve is also currently Chairman of the Board of the National Center for Policy Analysis, a nonprofit, nonpartisan public policy research organization whose goal is to develop and promote private, free-market alternatives to government regulation and control, solving problems by relying on the strength of the competitive, entrepreneurial private sector.

Born in Boston in 1952, Jim Halperin was an endlessly curious child, who grew up watching his father Ed build a successful manufacturing business from scratch. From the time he was a toddler, Jim admired -- and wanted to someday emulate -- his dad, who often took him to his offices. Jim loved creating projects and businesses, and would routinely draw other children into his various endeavors, including roadside lemonade stands, neighborhood circuses, astronomy shows, and similar enterprises. Jim became a comic book dealer and fanzine publisher at ages 11-12 (his 8 comic book fanzines published in 1964 and 1965 still show up for sale on eBay occasionally) and stays in touch with contributors to those fanzines, including several who later made careers in that field.

As a summer project, Jim formed a part-time rare stamp and coin business in 1968, the same year he received early acceptance to Harvard College. He Immediately noticed that the buy prices in the classified sections of coin publications were much higher than most of the sell prices in the larger ads, and realized that every coin retailer must have had their own grading standards, often one for buying and one for selling. By his third college semester Jim was enjoying the coin business more than his studies, so at the end of 1971 he took a leave of absence to found New England Rare Coin Galleries (NERCG) under the principle that and that there would be far more demand for coins if dealers used the same grading standard for both buying and selling. He also understood that for vintage US coins, the very highest grades tended to be rare, and extremely undervalued when compared to the more popular “affordable” grades. By adhering to a consistent and reliable grading standard, NERCG was an immediate success.

In 1975, Jim co-designed protocols for numismatics’ first mainframe computer system, which would help catapult NERCG to the top of the industry. He also established the first registered rare coin fund (NERCF) in 1975, which raised 5,000, and was liquidated at auction for .15 million in 1980, providing its investors a nearly five-fold return after fees and auction commissions in under 5 years.

In 1982, Jim merged part of his business with his friend and former archrival Steve Ivy’s company to form a 50-50 partnership, renamed Heritage, in Dallas, Texas. Concurrently, Jim sold part of NERCG, including its tradename, to an employee.

In 1984, Jim designed -- and graded nearly all the submissions for -- the first privately owned collectibles grading service, Numismatic Certification Institute (NCI). He also wrote a book later re-titled "How to Grade U.S. Coins", which outlined the uncirculated and proof grading standards upon which NGC and PCGS would later be based -- and still are today. Jim and Steve Ivy were also significant early investor-shareholders in both PCGS and NGC and affiliated companies such as CGC, PMG and PSA.

Throughout the last three decades of the 20th century, Jim was widely considered the most successful coin dealer in America, far outselling every other numismatic dealer during that period. Many of the top coin dealers of that period began their careers working for -- and/or being financed by – Jim, both at NERCG and later Heritage, some for nearly half a century. Jim still counts these numismatists among his most cherished friends. It’s especially worth noting that Marc Emory started working at NERCG in 1975, founded its European gold buying operations, then became and remains a working partner at Heritage.

Jim is also a well-known futurist, collector of rare comic books, comic book artwork, early 20th-century American art and other collectibles, venture capitalist, real estate and technology stock investor, and philanthropist. Among numerous other charities, Jim established the Halperin Foundation, a family arts/health/education organization, that he operates with his wife of 40+ years, Gayle Ziaks Halperin.

With Steve Ivy’s buy-in, although not his delight, Jim worked only half-time at Heritage for a year in the mid-1990s while authoring two futurist fiction novels. His first, The Truth Machine, published by Random House in 1996, became an international science fiction bestseller with over a half-million copies sold in multiple languages, and optioned 15 times as a feature film by Warner Brothers, Lionsgate then finally, Revelations Entertainment. Jim's second novel, The First Immortal, published in early 1998 was optioned as a Hallmark Hall of Fame television miniseries. Both remain in print.

Heritage and the collecting field itself benefited greatly when Jim used insights gleaned from his research for -- and marketing of -- those novels to help redesign Heritage’s website, pioneering the use of third-party pricing data on item pages as well as the first free Permanent Auction Archive in the auction business. After launching its new web site in 1998 Heritage quickly became the world’s highest selling numismatic auction house and has remained so every year since. Heritage subsequently hired scores of top experts, expanding into dozens of additional categories including its renowned Comics and Comic Art department, conceived, staffed and still overseen by Jim.

Heritage Auctions (HA.com) is now the most popular auction house online destination in the world. Heritage reported total sales exceeding .15 billion in 2025, its 5th consecutive annual sales record.

Jim still works full-time at Heritage Auctions and has no plans to retire until he can no longer contribute to the company’s goals. He currently donates about one-third of his income, mostly via The Halperin Foundation. Jim plans to eventually donate most of his assets to charity including his remaining Heritage shares.

Greg Rohan began collecting coins at the age of eight and, by ten, was already buying and selling from a dealer’s table at shows in his hometown of Seattle. His business rapidly grew, and in 1987 he joined Heritage Auctions as Executive Vice President. He was named President in 2003, becoming the first partner of founders Steve Ivy and Jim Halperin. Today, Greg oversees Heritage’s Legacy client group and works directly with top collectors across all the firm’s 50+ categories. Over his career, he has been involved in many of the rarest items and most important collections handled by Heritage, including the record-setting Ed Trompeter Collection, featured in the Guinness Book of World Records.

Greg has managed billions of dollars in consignments, provided expert testimony for the U.S. Attorney and the Federal Trade Commission, and appeared as an expert on CNN, CNBC, Bloomberg, ABC, CBS, and Anderson Cooper. His clients have included the families of actor John Wayne and publisher Malcolm Forbes, as well as institutions such as Random House, Time-Warner, Frito-Lay, Stanford University, Columbia University, and the Smithsonian Institution, among many others.

He is a past Chairman of the Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO) for North Texas and is a current member of YPO in both Dallas and New York City. Greg is an active supporter of the arts, having served as an advisor to the board at Austin College, as well as two terms on both the Tate Lecture Board of Directors at Southern Methodist University and on the seven-person Advisory Board at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. He also co-authored the award-winning Collectors Estate Handbook, now in its 15th edition.

Sam Spiegel is Chief Operating Officer and Technology Principal at Heritage Auctions, where he oversees daily operations across all business units and leads the company’s long-term technology strategy. In this role, he focuses on aligning operations, scaling infrastructure and enhancing the digital platforms that support Heritage’s global growth and client experience.

Sam began as an intern at Heritage in 2012 in the World & Ancient Coin department, joining full time in 2013 after graduating from the University of Chicago with degrees in Classics and History. Over the course of his career, he has played a key role in advancing operational efficiency, strengthening cross-departmental collaboration and driving technological innovation across the company.

Prior to his current role, Sam was deeply involved in market research, data analysis, catalog production and client development, working closely with many of the category’s top bidders and consignors. He also collaborated extensively with Heritage’s international offices and represented the company at trade shows worldwide, helping expand its global presence.

Sam has played a key role in advancing Heritage’s digital capabilities, introducing tools that bring greater transparency and context to the auction process, including the integration of comparable auction results and third-party grading census data into online lot pages. He continues to leverage data and technology to improve decision-making, streamline operations and strengthen the overall client experience.

Cristiano Bierrenbach started trading coins in his native Rio de Janeiro at the age of seven before founding his own successful numismatic business. In 1996, he established one of the first numismatic shops on eBay and later became the youngest Technical Director of the Brazilian Numismatic Society at the age of 30. Cristiano joined Heritage and moved to the United States in 2007. Under his leadership, Heritage World and Ancient Coins auction sales grew steadily from .8 million in that year to .5 million in 2011, the year he became a partner. Cristiano developed the market for Heritage online-only automated auction venues, which today feature more than sixty events per year. In World Coins alone, these auctions exceed million annually. Since 2015, Cristiano has been at the forefront of Heritage’s international expansion into Europe and Asia, and will continue to expand the company’s international footprint in the future.

Todd Hignite is Executive Vice President, Partner, and Global Head of Comic Art, Heritage Auctions. Todd has been integral to the company’s continued expansion in multiple art and collectible categories over the last fifteen years. As one of the world’s top Comic Art experts, he has overseen numerous record-setting results both at auction and privately, including Frank Frazetta’s world-record .5mm sale, managed many of the largest private and institutional consignments in the category, and played a key leadership role in the dramatic rise of the markets for Comics and Illustration Art, which has seen Heritage established as the dominant international auction house in those fields. 

Todd has also been instrumental to the increased cultural awareness of these art forms, notably in organizing the most substantial US retrospective devoted to Robert Crumb, which originated at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, San Francisco and toured US museums, including the Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia, and the Frye Art Museum, Seattle; as author of the books In the Studio: Visits with Contemporary Cartoonists (Yale University Press) and The Art of Jaime Hernandez/The Secrets of Life and Death (Abrams); as founding editor of the much lauded Comic Art magazine; and as inaugural curator for the Dowd Illustration Research Archive. He also has extensive experience in both the museum and gallery worlds, including working for several years at Pace Gallery, New York, and he holds a Master’s degree in Art History from Washington University in St. Louis.

In 1991, Todd co-founded Pinnacle Rarities, a firm specializing in servicing the most advanced and preeminent collectors in numismatics.  At 25, he was one of the youngest people ever accepted into the Professional Numismatists Guild and has served on its Consumer Protection Committee and its Legislation/Taxation Issues Committee.  In 1992, he was invited to join the Board of Directors for the Industry Council for Tangible Assets, later serving as its Chairman (2002-2005).  Todd joined Heritage in 2006 and became a partner in 2009.  He currently serves on the Board of Trustees for the Dallas Historical Society and on the “Red Book” Advisory Panel.  He is often cited as one of the most influential deal-makers and market experts in U.S. numismatics and oversees services for our Legacy Client Group. Todd advises many of the world’s most prominent collectors and is often engaged with our more complex auction consignments and most valuable private transactions.

Joseph “Joe” Maddalena joined Heritage Auctions as Executive Vice President in January 2021 following an unparalleled 35-year track record of success as the founder of Profiles in History, which he built into the world’s largest auctioneer of coveted Hollywood memorabilia and popular culture keepsakes.  Some of the iconic items he brought to market included Luke Skywalker’s light saber, Dorothy’s ruby slippers, Indiana Jones’ whip and Peter Fonda’s Easy Rider chopper, along with the 2011 Debbie Reynolds auction that was highlighted by Marilyn Monroe’s Seven Year Itch “subway dress” realizing .52 million.  

Born into a family of antiques dealers in Rhode Island, Joe learned early on how to turn his passion for collecting historical autographs into a career.  Upon graduation from Pepperdine, he made the decision to become a full-time dealer of historical documents, and opened his first office in 1985.  Profiles in History now owns virtually every Guinness Book record for prices of original screen-used memorabilia.  Joe is a lifetime member of the Manuscript Society and is widely recognized as the nation’s leading authority on entertainment memorabilia and historical documents.  In addition, he starred for three seasons in Syfy’s Hollywood Treasure, which gave viewers an inside look at the world of showbiz and pop culture memorabilia.  

Joe brings deep and long-lasting relationships with major collectors in a myriad fields, as well as an encyclopedic knowledge of multiple categories such as nature and science, rare books and wine. His years of experience in these numerous categories and expansive role at Heritage will allow him to serve clients far more efficiently and effectively than ever.

Ryan Carroll was born into the rare coin business in Winter Springs, FL. Though there is not a time when he does not remember coins being a part of his life, Ryan began seriously collecting by the age of 10 and, by the age of 13, was buying and selling at shows. In that time he attended the ANA’s Summer Seminar three years in row, returning after that to teach the Advanced Grading seminar at the event. Ryan went to work for PCGS at the age of 19. With a near photographic recall of coins and grades, Ryan rapidly rose through the ranks of young dealers and joined Heritage just more than a decade ago. He is now the head of grading and valuations for the entire company. He is widely regarded in the numismatics business as the top coin grader and trader in the world. Ryan is a member of the ANA.

Marc Emory was born in northern Virginia, where he grew up the son of a Washington D.C. newspaper correspondent. As a child of the Washington political scene, he visited the White House at age 13 and Capitol Hill many times. Like many children of Washington, he attended the Sidwell Friends School. He was then accepted for the School Year Abroad program in Barcelona. He then went on to graduate from Andover (1970) and, four years later, graduated cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania (1974) with a degree in Spanish. He has always had an interest in languages, and while at Penn, he was introduced to German and Swedish and continued his studies in Spanish and Russian from high school. In addition to those four languages plus Catalan, a byproduct of his year in Barcelona, he has since learned French, Italian, and Dutch. Always interested in collectibles, Marc was impressed from early childhood by the Smithsonian collections of both coins and minerals, which were within walking distance of his father's office at the National Press Building at 14th and F streets in Washington, D.C. He maintains an extensive collection of minerals at his German home near the Rheinland city of Dusseldorf, which he shares with his wife, Elisabeth, of 43 years. 

Marc also has a collection of U.S. and world coins and an assortment of guitars hand-crafted by legendary luthier Bozo Podunavac. A musician by hobby, he has made recordings and done solo concert tours in his spare time. He has performed before Presidents Ford and Clinton. Marc has been with the Heritage organization without interruption for over fifty years, the first seven with one of the firms that later merged to form Heritage.After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania, Marc founded and oversees the operations of the Heritage Overseas offices, which are now in France (since 1979), Germany (since 1979), Switzerland (since 1984), and the Netherlands (since 1990). The European offices, under Marc's supervision, offer Heritage services to collectors, consignors, and estates in their own countries and languages, as well as to banks and Central Banks around Europe and the world.

Dustin Johnston joined the Heritage team in 1998 and has been active in nearly every aspect of the business. He was named a partner in 2024. He was born and raised in Tucson, where he also attended the University of Arizona. He oversees the management of the Currency division, which includes consignment acquisitions, purchasing, cataloging, marketing, and inventory management for World and US Banknotes. He is a life member of the American Numismatic Association, Numismatic Literary Guild, and International Bank Note Society, and a member of several other numismatic organizations, including the Professional Numismatists Guild, Professional Currency Dealers Association, and Society of Paper Money Collectors. Currently, he serves as Vice President for the PCDA, and as a board member for both the PNG and the Anti-Counterfeiting Educational Foundation. His involvement in the industry and oversight of a significant market share in auctions landed him on Coin World’s list of Top 100 Most Influential People in Numismatics. Away from work, he enjoys married life, his two young kids, and WWI research related to the 364th Infantry.

Sarah Miller is Senior Vice President and Partner at Heritage’s New York Office and brings a lifelong passion for coins. A student of numismatics since age 11, she first fell in love with coins and their history while attending her first coin show. This led to a job in rare coins throughout high school and college, where she graduated Summa Cum Laude from North Central College in Naperville, Ill., with a degree in Finance and Economics.

Sarah assists Heritage clients with buying and selling their rare coin and currency collections on a daily basis. She has twice appeared as a numismatic expert on CNN and is a current member of the Professional Numismatists Guild, American Numismatic Association, the American Numismatic Society, and the New York Numismatic Club. She is also a licensed Auctioneer in Texas, Florida, and New York City.

Paul joined Heritage in 1984 and retired at the end of 2025. Formerly the COO and Technology partner for all Heritage companies and affiliates.

Jim Stoutjesdyk was named Vice President of Heritage Rare Coin Galleries in 2004. A native of Michigan, Jim has been actively involved in numismatics since a young age and the American Numismatic Association named him their Outstanding Young Numismatist of the Year in 1987. After graduating from the University of Michigan he was employed by Superior Galleries in Beverly Hills, California where he eventually became their Director of Collector Sales.

Since coming to Heritage in 1993, Jim has assumed a wide variety of responsibilities. He initially was hired as the Gallery Manager for Heritage's retail showroom. For several years he helped to develop Heritage's retail clientele and placed millions of dollars worth of rare coins with collectors. Jim's talent for writing and passion for numismatics led him to become the editor of Heritage's Insider magazine. From 1998 to early 2000 this bi-monthly publication brought collectors the latest offerings from Heritage's inventory and featured a wide variety of informative articles. With the rapid development of Heritage's web site and instant access to our inventory, the Insider magazine was phased out. Jim's interest turned to wholesale trading and he quickly became a familiar face at coin shows across the nation. As Vice President, Jim's duties include buying and selling millions of dollars worth of rare coins each month, pricing all of the new coins available for sale each day, and overseeing the daily operations of the rare coin department.  In 2019 the American Numismatic Association awarded Jim the very prestigious Doctor of Numismatics honorary degree.

Sara is the Managing Director of Heritage Auctions' London office, where she oversees UK operations, manages a growing team, and collaborates closely with global offices to deliver outstanding results. Under her leadership, the office has experienced significant growth in operations and a steady increase in high-value consignments across multiple categories. Sara has successfully organised and presented high-profile events, including exhibitions for iconic items such as the Ruby Slippers from The Wizard of Oz and memorabilia from Game of Thrones. She is equally passionate about other categories, including Comics, Comic Art, and Modern and Contemporary Art, which she follows with keen interest. These efforts have garnered international attention, enhancing Heritage Auctions' visibility and reputation globally.

With a background in Art History and Art Management, Sara brings both academic expertise and industry experience to her role. She is deeply committed to fostering relationships with top clients and ensuring a seamless, world-class Heritage experience. Representing the company at major national and international events, Sara continues to elevate Heritage Auctions profile in the UK.

Roberta Kramer is a 25-year veteran of the art and antiques world. Before beginning her career in auctions, she spent two years curating for the Ben Uri Art Society in London. Returning stateside, Roberta served as Gallery Director for J. Rosenthal Fine Art until her interest in Continental Antiques led her to a management position at Rita Bucheit, Ltd. In 1992, with her extensive knowledge of fine art and antiques, Roberta started her auction career at Leslie Hindman Auctioneers as an account executive. In 1995, after taking a leave to found the Antiques Center at Kinzie Square, she was named Consignment Director of newly formed Chicago auction house, Susanin’s Auctions. While at Susanin’s she also managed the appraisal department and served as principal auctioneer alongside Sean Susanin. In 2001 she founded Roberta Kramer & Associates, Inc., a firm specializing in appraisals and art consulting. A recognized USPAP qualified appraiser and licensed auctioneer, Roberta has served as a charity auctioneer for numerous charities and has been a frequent contributor to Art & Antiques Magazine. 

Roberta joined HA in 2016, opening the first regional office in the Midwest for the company.  Along with her staff of specialists in multiple areas of collecting, she serves the Chicago and greater midwestern region of the country.

Industry veteran Mai Matsumoto joined Heritage as Managing Director to establish and lead the operations of our Tokyo office. Matsumoto has more than a dozen years of auction experience, including tenures with the Tokyo offices of Antiquorum Auctioneers Hong Kong Ltd. and Phillips Auctioneers, where she was involved in all aspects of operations, from client relations to office management. At Heritage, she works with collectors across all categories and oversees the Tokyo office team to deliver exceptional service. Since the office's opening in 2024, Matsumoto and her team have provided unparalleled support to clients throughout Japan. The Tokyo office has steadily expanded to meet the growing demand for consignments, while introducing the value of fine art and collectibles and sharing the excitement of auctions with the Japanese market.

Katherine Van Dell is a jewelry specialist and Gemological Institute of America graduate gemologist. Katherine is Director of Jewelry for Heritage and Co-Director of Heritage’s Palm Beach office. She began her career in Philadelphia at Freeman’s. She later joined Rago Auctions and was instrumental in departmental growth as head of the jewelry. Katherine then joined Doyle as a Vice President and jewelry specialist based out of Palm Beach, Florida. As a specialist, Katherine is constantly informed by her understanding of basic construction, aesthetics, and historical context. A graduate of the Tyler School of Art at Temple University, Katherine studied metalwork, bench craft and art history in her undergraduate studies and later obtained her graduate gemologist degree from the Gemological Institute of America. Katherine regularly speaks and writes on a broad range of topics relating to jewelry and the history of jewelry. Katherine and her husband Sebastian Clarke, also an Antiques Roadshow appraiser, reside with their family in West Palm Beach, Florida.

Tim McNab brings over 20 years of experience in auctions and appraisals to his role as Managing Director of Heritage Auctions’ New York office.  A

USPAP-compliant generalist appraiser and licensed auctioneer, Tim specializes in 17th–19th century furniture, decorative arts, and luxury goods. His diverse career has taken him across key art markets—including New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and London—where he has held roles in operations, international logistics, project and property management, and appraisals.  

Tim earned his B.A. in French Language and Literature from UCLA. Raised in a family of professional musicians, he began his career in the performing arts, playing piano and cello and singing opera, with highlights including appearances with LA Opera during the 1984 Olympic Festival and performances at the Hollywood Bowl.  

In his free time, Tim enjoys traveling the world, with a focus on medieval to revival architecture, fine art, and historic interiors.  

Jacco Scheper started collecting coins and stamps in 1977 at the age of 7. After graduating from the famous international Business University Nijenrode in 1991, Jacco held various management positions. In 1996 he and Huib Pelzer acquired coin show organizer MPO, and eventually transformed it into an auction and trading company. MPO held its first auction in 1999. Within a few years MPO became the leading auction house for coins, banknotes and stamps in the Netherlands, and expanded its auction activities to other collectibles from 2011 onwards. In 2015 MPO’s superb reputation for integrity and expertise caught the attention of the owners of Heritage Auctions, which acquired MPO and its entire staff and rebranded it as Heritage Auctions Europe. 

In 2006 Jacco was voted onto the board of the NVMH (Dutch association of Coin Dealers), and elected President of the board in 2009, serving a 6 year term ending in 2012. In 2015 he became President again. Jacco also serves as one of the experts of the NVMH Committee for Numismatic Certification. He also served as a member of the board of SBN (Foundation to Promote Numismatics) from 2006 until 2015, is one of the judges of Krause's COTY (Coin Of The Year – Award), and holds memberships in TMV (Association for Registered Appraisers), Hobéon – recognized – and KGMPK (Royal Society for Coins and Medals).

Jacco is conversant in English, French, Dutch/Flemish and German.

Kenneth Yung joined Heritage Auctions as Director of Asian Operations after building a career in numismatics as one of the most active dealers in the Hong Kong and China markets. In addition to accepting consignments for upcoming Heritage auctions, he will be responsible for all Hong Kong office operations. Kenneth began to develop a strong interest in collecting older items as a child, which eventually led to collecting coins and banknotes during his high school years, and owning a retail business in Hong Kong during the 1990’s. He has been a full-time dealer since 2002 and PCGS, NGC & PMG authorized dealer since 2012. A committee member of the Hong Kong Numismatic Society and Vice Chairman of the Hong Kong Stamp and Coin Dealer Association, Kenneth is the organizer of the Hong Kong International Numismatic Fair (HKINF), which is held each June and December.