TD Lunar New Year Auction sells license plates "S" and "88" for over HK$10m

The Transport Department's annual Lunar New Year license plate auction, held on Sunday, witnessed fierce bidding, particularly for the license plates "88" and "S," which sold for HK$11.4 million and HK$14.2 million, respectively.

The auction began with the '88' license plate, which resonates with the sound "prosper prosper" in Chinese, starting at an opening bid of HK$2.82 million. The bidding commenced at 3.10 pm with initial increments of HK$10,000.

The competition quickly escalated, and within approximately 2 minutes, the bid surged to HK$7 million. Due to the intense bidding activity, the increment was raised to HK$100,000.

The most vigorous competition involved bidders numbered 9, 5, and 144, who actively outbid each other. Roughly 3 minutes later, the price exceeded HK$10 million.

After about 10 minutes of bidding, the '88' license plate was acquired by bidder number 144 for HK$11.4 million. The winner, however, left promptly after the auction, avoiding any interaction with the media.

The 'S' license plate also captured significant attention, starting at a modest HK$5,000. Unlike the '88' plate, the bidding for 'S' was less intense but still substantial, culminating in a final bid of HK$14.2 million after about 5 minutes. This plate was sold to bidder number 102.

According to previous information, English letter license plates have been highly sought after. For example, the 'W' plate, symbolizing "double victory (V)," fetched HK$26 million in 2021. The 'R' plate, often associated with supercars, was sold for HK$25.5 million in 2023, making it the second most expensive.

The third highest sale was for the 'D' plate, which went for HK$20.2 million to a female bidder during last year's Lunar New Year auction.

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