A new polymer Jane Austen tenner has sold for a huge £7,200 at a Bank of England charity auction this morning, smashing the estimate of £2,000-£3,000.
Fierce bidding erupted over the AA01 000010 note at the event in London held by auction house Spink – it was the lowest serial numbered one available to buy.
It means the note went for an incredible 720 times its face value.
Charity auction: The note with the lowest available serial number at the event sold for far more than its estimate
In total, there are 87 £10 notes at the auction with serial numbers between 10 and 100.
The second lot, note AA01 000011 sold for a huge £5,200 and AA01 000012 for £3,500.
Meanwhile the note ending with 17 sold for £2,200, 18 £2,000, 19 £1,800 and 20 £1,900 at the event.
The Queen was gifted AA01 000001 and other lower numbers go to people close to the process.
The tenner with the serial number AA01 001817 to was donated to Winchester Cathedral – which features on the note – marking the year when Austen was buried there.
We said last month that the AA01 000010 £10 note was likely to go for far higher than the estimate, given the interest in notes and global appeal of Jane Austen.
Last year, the lowest numbered Churchill £5 note – AA01 000017 – sold at a similar charity auction for £4,150, as first revealed by This is Money who watched the event unfold.
The note: This £10 note sold for £7,200 today – 720 times its face value
Today’s packed and boisterous charity auction is the fifth the Bank of England has instigated of low numbered banknotes.
The proceeds of the auction will go to three charities: Candlelighters, Haven House Children’s Hospice and Macmillan Cancer Support.
The £5 auction last year raised £200,000.
In an interview with chief cashier Victoria Cleland – who auctioned the AA01 000010 note – she said interest around low serial numbered notes shows ‘how much the public care about notes and physical money.’
She added: ‘I guess it is a bit like car number plates – some people want to collect notes with serial numbers the same as their initials.’
The new £10 note launched on 14 September.
It saw dozens of people queuing outside the Bank of England to get their hands on them.
Serious collectors are most likely to be interested in AA01 notes in brilliant condition.
Other serial numbers expected to have a bit of interest include ones starting JA01 and JA75 (JA = Jane Austen).
We will keep this story updated with other notes of interest that sell today at the auction.