Jan. 19 (Bloomberg) -- An 1858 Hong Kong banknote with a face value of $25 may fetch HK$750,000 ($96,074) at a Hong Kong sale of Chinese paper currency tomorrow, said auctioneer Spink.

The unissued $25 banknote by Chartered Mercantile Bank of India, London & China may be the only one in private hands, according to Spink. The black-and-white note with allegorical symbols of the British colonial empire is one of about 600 items expected to fetch up to a combined HK$6 million, said Barnaby Faull, a Spink director. Chartered Mercantile changed its name to Mercantile Bank in 1892 and was bought by HSBC Group in 1959.

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I wonder that this note would have sold for a bit more back in 1997-2000 right after the handover when HK notes were hot.

These are usually rare old banknotes not affected by the 1997 handover period. There are groups of rare notes collectors for old rare banknotes. Most of them are businessmen and professionals. A number of them buy for investment. Hong Kong, China, Taiwan and Singapore collectors collect rare old banknotes from their countries. Due to cultural similarities, Singapore Chinese and Hong Kong Chinese collect each other countries old rare banknotes. Of course, now the mainland Chineses join in as the powerful collectors and investors.

Derrick,it is also the British Commonwealth notaphilists that are also very interested in buying colonial Hong Kong banknotes as well.If someone offered me a Hong Kong banknote that was issued in January 1997 by the trading banks.If it is dated 1st of July 1997 or later,then,I am not interested.

Aidan.

Hong Kong $25 Banknote Sells for HK$782,000 at Spink Auction

By Le-Min Lim

Jan. 22 (Bloomberg) -- An 1858 Hong Kong banknote with a face value of $25 sold for HK$782,000 ($100,145) at a Hong Kong sale of Chinese paper currency, said auctioneer Spink.

The final price, including 15 percent buyer's commission, compares with Spink's pre-sale estimate of between HK$650,000 and HK$750,000. The unissued black-and-white banknote by Chartered Mercantile Bank of India, London & China is one of about 600 items that fetched more than HK$8 million combined, the London-based auction house said in a statement. Chartered Mercantile changed its name to Mercantile Bank in 1892 and was bought by HSBC Group in 1959.

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