Extremely rare license plate recently sold for $2 million because of a single letter
- A license plate in China has sold for $2 million at auction
- The plate sold for the staggering sum due to its single letter nature
- The Lunar New Year auction was exclusively for rare license plates
Published on Feb 19, 2025 at 12:21 PM (UTC+4)
by Henry Kelsall
Last updated on Feb 19, 2025 at 7:54 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
A rare license plate recently sold for $2 million at a Hong Kong auction.
The auction took place in February 2025, with it expressly set up for the sale of rare and exclusive license plates.
At the auction, 49 license plates were offered for sale, 48 of which were traditional Chinese plates and one of which was a personalized example.
The most exclusive of the lot was sold for $2 million, thanks to it containing just a solitary letter.
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The letter S was the most desirable license plate on offer.
Initially, the star of the show looked to be the car license plate ’88’.
The number eight is a lucky number in China due to its phonetic similarity to the word ‘prosperity’ in Chinese.
However, the letter ‘S’ would sell for the most money.
Initially, it was listed at just HK$5,000, or roughly $640 USD.
However, by the end of the auction, it sold for a staggering HK$14.2 million. The equivalent of $2 million USD.
The plate reached this incredible figure in just a few minutes, eclipsing the total of even the number 88 license plate.
According to Hong Kong insurance broker Automate Wealth Management, the ‘S’ license plate sold for a lot due to its association with DC hero Superman.
The S is, of course, worn on Superman’s chest.
The 88 plate also sold for a large amount of money
While it didn’t quite beat the ‘S’ plate, the number ’88’ still sold for big money.
According to reports, it sold for 11.4 million HKD, around $1.5 million USD.
This and the ‘S’ are among the top 10 most expensive license plates ever sold in Hong Kong.
Remarkably, they haven’t yet cracked the top five with that taken up by other high-figure rare plates.
The top plate sale was for the letter ‘W’ at the 2021 Chinese New Year auction.
That sold for $26 million HKD, roughly $3.3 million in USD.
The letter R sold for $25.5 million HKD, around $3.2 million USD.
The rest of the top five in USD include ‘D’ for $2.5 million, ’28’ for $2.3 million, and finally ’18’ for $2.12 million.
Henry is a content writer with nearly ten years experience, having written for various publications since 2017. Qualifying with a Sports Journalism degree from Staffordshire University, Henry loves all things automotive but has a particular soft spot for classic Japanese cars and anything Lancia. He also has a curious passion for steam locomotives.
