Verweis : "COINMAN1"
I have been asked by a friend to sell the banknote as shown above, but need help to decide my best way forward.
Do I use ebay, or do I offer it for sale to the Numista community first?
I have seen this type of banknote, signed by P.Beale and dated 1951 for sale at a range of prices from £69.00-£495.00, with a vastly differing quality.
I think, going by what I have seen for sale, I estimate the banknote to be worth in the region of £300.00, as it is in excellent condition with no holes, cuts or large folds.
-Very nice note! Here's what I would tell your friend. It's about trust: & one of the reasons I don't "get into it" with the collectors who are very adamantly against
TPG (Third Party Grading). The big picture is- if a collector is going to put 'X amount of dollars' for a 'white fiver,' they'll want to be absolutely certain of what they're buying. A certified note allays all fears that it's a fake or liberally graded by the seller. I would certify a note like your friend's Beale note if I were to sell it b/c it is definitely worth the price of certification & (obviously by your description) in decent grade. Those are my 2 criteria & that note definitely meets my minimum thresholds of BV & AU grade. If you were to submit it to one of the auction houses that's exactly what they would do (they rarely sell raw older/tougher notes nowadays).
Once it was certified, I would either consign it to a big seller on eBay or one of the auction houses (Heritage or Stacks). You want the auction house that has the best audience (most European buyers) for that note. Notes like these should be started at a low start price (like $10) like the big auction houses do (not
BIN Buy-it-Now on eBay). Collectors are becoming jaded by the copious
BIN stuff they see on eBay. They know that they can get fair market value on an auctioned note these days so that's how I'd go. I realize that your friend will take a hit from possible consignment fees so that's why I would rather use eBay & you may want to sell it yourself (for him/her).
If you decided to sell it yourself (on your eBay account) then disclose that you might not get the type of traffic a large seller would have. If you list it
BIN than its just like so many of the other overpriced notes we see (IMO) & it may take quite a while to sell. If it is graded & listed true auction style- then much more attention will be drawn, buyers will save it & it should fetch a pretty decent price.
