In a two-part special, 101 East explores Asia’s role in the booming multimillion-dollar dinosaur fossil trade.
The global demand for dinosaur fossils is booming, with increasing interest from wealthy collectors across Asia. In 2024, a Stegosaurus skeleton was sold at an auction in New York for a record $44.6m.
Fossil hunters are raking in profits, while Asian buyers bond over their collections and see fossils as a way to educate the next generation about history.
However, some academics say the commercial fossil trade is unethical and harmful to science.
101 East investigates the multimillion-dollar trade in dinosaur fossils.
Published On 7 Feb 2026