Table of contents for August 2023 in Banknote Reporter

Due to inflation many countries are considering introducing higher denomination coins or bank notes. Not India. The Asian nation is withdrawing its highest denomination bank note, a note with a face value of 2,000 rupees. According to the Reserve Bank of India, there is evidence the denomination is not being commonly used for transactions. An official statement from the RBI reads, “The stock of bank notes in other denominations continues to be adequate to meet the currency requirement of the public.” India’s 2,000-rupee bank note is worth about $24.50 U.S. on international exchanges. The denomination was introduced in 2016 following the Narendra Modi-led government having withdrawn the 500-, and 1,000-rupee notes on short notice in an effort to allegedly flush out counterfeits in circulation. The ultimate result appears to have…

Summertime Slowdowns Summertime and the prices are weaker. No big shows going on, so small auction bidding is a bit slow. Small Size notes are a bit down in the Tuesday night Heritage auctions. The large Stacks Bowers, Heritage, and Lyn Knight auctions present stronger prices, as it would seem they attract more bidders. One example is a $5 FRN 1934B* note that sold for $1,650 as a unique note in XF 40 some years ago and was recently offered in a Bank Note Reporter ad for $350 in very fine. That would seem to be a bargain, although collectors might miss the fine print in a BNR ad. Perhaps interest is waning in older series of notes that are now out of sight in circulation. Young collectors might want…

Bob Liddell is among the foremost if not the foremost U.S. small size error collector. He is always looking for new types of misprints. The modern generations of 32-subject COPE and now 50-subject LEPE numbering press have been a boon, because they are cranking out error types never seen before. Lately some previously unheard-of 7-digit mismatches have burst onto the scene. Of course, Bob had to get examples. The purpose of this article is to profile one of the newly recognized 7-digit mismatch varieties. The thing that makes this numbering error so unusual is that when it occurred, all 8 number wheels were turning in lockstep with each other within one numbering head each time a sheet passed through the press. We have never seen this before. Pictured here are…

The publication Central Banking reported on April 27 that Argentina was importing its bank notes from several countries. On May 22 The Guardian newspaper reported Argentina’s newest and highest denomination bank note, the 2,000 peso, was worth $4 U.S. in international exchange markets. On June 20 the New York Times newspaper headline read: “In Argentina, Inflation Passes 100 percent (and the Restaurants Are Packed).” Javier Milei is an Argentine congressman and economist who is the front runner running for president. Milei has been vocal, saying if he wins he will make the U.S. dollar the official currency and “blow up” the Banco Central de la República Argentina or Central Bank of Argentina. What’s going on here? The peso has suffered the humiliation of being named the worst-performing currency in emerging…

Sometimes, a huge denomination note generates huge demand. A Chinese Sinkiang Provincial Bank 6,000,000,000 Yuan = 10,000 Gold Yuan Pick S1797 PMG Choice Uncirculated 64 EPQ, the largest known denomination for any Chinese bank note, drew the largest result ever when it more than doubled its pre-auction estimate, ending at $78,000. Few examples of this high denomination from the 1949 Gold Yuan issue exist due to the combination of the purchasing power of this note at the time and the short lifespan of the bank, and even with that limited available, this example stands out, as one of just two registered in Uncirculated condition in the PMG Population Report. The magnificent 6 billion Yuan bank note was one of many that established enjoyed record results, a list that included many…

The First National Bank in Fort Kent is Maine’s only 14,000-charter bank. Those banks remain very popular among collectors because they represent the last of the noteissuing banks. 2,916 type 2 $10 were emitted from it, of which about ten have turned up. Fort Kent faces New Brunswick across the St. John River, which serves as much of the northern border of Maine. Another appeal of the note is Fort in the town name. Fort Kent was erected by the U.S. Army in October 1839 as a border outpost during the undeclared Aroostook War, which was a festering border dispute between the U.S. and Great Britain in which various Maine and New Brunswick militias faced off as both postured for possession of the rich timberland in that remote region. The…

Many rare and collectible bank notes from Southeast Asia are being offered in a Monetarium Auction, which opened on June 20, 2023, and continues until Aug. 6, 2023. Among the most interesting items is a Malaysia 1976-81 Bank Negara 1000 Ringgit graded PMG 66 Gem Uncirculated EPQ (lot 2049) with an estimate of 60,000 to 65,000 SGD (about $45,000 to $48,000 USD). It is the highest graded example of this note in the PMG Population Report and features Fancy Serial Number A/1 555168. Fancy serial numbers are unique and visually appealing number patterns found on currency that can add value to a note. Some common types of fancy serial numbers include solid serial numbers, binary serial numbers and repeaters. Another example of this note (lot 2048), also graded PMG 66…