World’s Most Expensive License Plate Brings $15M at Dubai Auction
The sale eclipses the previous record set by the sale of the “1” plate in Abu Dhabi in 2008.
While most of us make do with our alphanumeric state-issued plates, some people like to splash out on something a little more custom. One cashed-up buyer has set a new record, though, spending a jaw-dropping $15,000,000 to purchase the world's most expensive plate in Dubai.
According to The Seattle Times, the "P7" license plate attracted the huge sum of 55 million dirhams at an Emirates Auction charity sale on Saturday. Thanks to the design of Dubai's license plates, it is essentially a single numeral 7 plate with the P off to one side. Proceeds of the sale were dedicated to the 1 Billion Meals Endowment, a part of Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid's food aid project.
The sale eclipses the former record by some margin. Formerly, the highest-priced plate was sold in the UAE for 52.2 million dirhams back in 2008. That plate, bearing the number 1, was purchased by businessman Saeed Abdul Ghaffar Khouri.
Single-numeral and single-letter plates are often the most prized and most expensive in any jurisdiction. In Australia, a "4" plate sold in New South Wales for $1.6 million in 2017. Earlier this year, one Hong Kong resident paid $3.2 million for a plate bearing the designation "R."
Other famous examples include the "MM" plate in California and the "F1" plate in the UK. Both have been listed for eight-figure prices exceeding that of the Dubai sale, but it's understood neither plate actually sold for those prices.
The identity of the winning bidder in Dubai was not revealed. However, they should be pretty easy to spot driving around with such a distinctive plate. "Was that them?" you'll ask your passenger as you're cruising down the fourteen-lane Sheikh Zayed Road. "I'm not sure," they'll reply. "I think it might have been 9."
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