The results from our April 2025 Hong Kong world paper money auction totaled $3.55 million, only a hair’s breadth away from our highest-ever total of $3.65 million reached in April 2023. Additionally, the 2025 auction was distinguished by its offering of with multiple rarities from the Voyager, Al-Kugel, Norman Lin and W.H. Lu collections. (All prices are in USD and include the buyer’s premium)
Highlights from each collection include:
1. The Voyager Collection: The highly scarce Russo-Chinese/Russo-Asiatic Bank items found in lots 30407, 30408, and 30410 sold for $ 45,600, $33,600, and $45,600 respectively. The first note is believed to be unique, and the other two are phenomenally rare. Another notable item is lot 30217, a 50 Tael note issued by the Asiatic Banking Corporation in the early 1860s. It is one of the earliest notes issued by a ‘Foreign Bank’ in China and sold for $36,000. Other high-end notes from the collection include lot 30378 at 38,400 and lot 30295 at $28,800. Collectors can look forward to our October 2025 offering of the Voyager Collection Part II to continue their hunt for rare, high-quality notes issued by various ‘Foreign Banks in China.’
2. The Norman Lin Collection, assembled by a veteran collector, offered many rarities. Lots 30343 and 30344, both Mexican dollar-denominated notes issued by HSBC in the 1890s, sold for $28,800 and $14,400, respectively. Other rarities from the collection include a set of Bank of China’s Liao Zhong Kai’s portrait notes, which sold for a combined total of $13,800 (lots 30081, 30082 and 30083), and a National Industrial Bank of China 100 Yuan specimen, which sold for $8,400 (lot 30153).
3. The W.H. Lu Collection of First Series Renminbi specimen notes was assembled by Singapore-based veteran collector, Mr. Lu Wing Hee. Many years ago, the notes were sold as a single lot, but they were offered as individual lots in our sale. The breathtaking ‘Running Horse’ in EPQ state (lot 31059) sold for $55,200, and the ‘Mongolian Tent’ (lot 31056) realized $20,400.
4. The highly desirable Deutsch Asiatische Bank banknotes from the Al Kugel Collection remain fiercely contested. A Tsingtau branch 5 Dollar specimen in 65-EPQ (lot 30282) sold for $43,200, while an issued $50 from the same branch in PMG 20 (lot 30283) brought $31,200. We are honored to have had the opportunity to offer notes from the Kugel Collection in our auctions over the last two years, and we are proud of the consistently record-breaking prices they have achieved.
Additional outstanding results among other notes include a Honan Yu Chuan Bank 1 Tael (lot 30483) which sold for $60,000, a 1985 HSBC $1000 solid number 8 in 67-EPQ (lot 31269) that brought $26,400, and a 1959 Chartered Bank $500 in 55-EPQ (lot 31161) that realized $19,200.
These results demonstrate collectors’ confidence in our company when they decide to sell, as well as the strength of our marketing and the intense interest of our extensive client base. Complete results from the April 2025 Hong Kong (SAR) Auction are available at StacksBowers.com.
Our next auction in Hong Kong will be held in October 2025. For further questions about the sale or to consign your items, please call us at +852.2117.1191 or email [email protected]. The consignment deadline is in late June 2025.
