My wild story about Chinese currency

[frugi]

A few months before the Pandemic struck I was set up at the local flea market where I sell various cheap coin and currency deals. I sell mostly $1.00 items, jewelry, coins, foreign currency, campaign buttons. It’s a great place to buy good deals. I have found lots of sterling, and gold cheap from other dealers, in addition to practically all my kid’s toys. I had a gentleman approach my booth and offered me some Chinese currency . He had about 150 notes. He wanted credit in my booth in trade. I have around 100 in trade $20.00 in cash for the notes. I took them to get appraised and the appraiser (who charged me by the hour) told me they were all real, and put them up nice in cases, and labeled each individually with the Pick number and a conservative market value based on condition. He valued the entire collection at conservatively $70,000.00 to $120,000.00 and two notes of the group he said were priceless. He said he couldn’t accurately place a value but that recent auctions of that note were in the 6 figures. So, needless to say I was excited. Then the pandemic hit. Pretty much I just sat on the notes for a few weeks try to decide what to do, and then talked to a guy in California from Stacks Bower auction company who wanted to fly here, pick up the collection and go directly to Hong Kong and put them up in the next auction. But then he asked for pictures which I sent via my phone by text and called me and said he believes they are fake and he isn’t flying here or wants any interest. So then I called back the appraiser who stood by his appraisal. So, i next took them to 75% of all of my local coin stores and almost every place told me to call the only expert in town on this stuff, which just happens to be the appraiser I had used. The other 25% of coin stores did not care or know anything about them. So, I took them to a coin show that came locally. This was 1 year in to the Pandemic now. I had about half of the dealers I spoke to and showed the notes too told me they were fake. So at this point I really assumed they are junk. I decided to cull out all the notes that had values under $100.00 and take those to the flea market and just try and see if people can tell me about them or show me why they are fake, etc. So, the dealer set up next to me was looking at them and I told him, “I think they are fake”….. I told him the whole story, and turns out he knows the appraiser, and starts saying that he knows the appraiser values things much higher than market and that he wants to but my notes at 75% off the shown price. So, the pile I had there that day added up to be around $10,000.00, and he offered me $2500.00, to which I accepted. Now remember at this point I think they are fake and I have almost all of them still at home. A whole month goes by. The night before the first day of the flea market, the dealer who bought the notes calls me and asks if I have anymore because he wants “to buy everything else you have or are willing to sell. I kept the two rare priceless notes and about $30,000.00 appraised value of other notes. I took to the flea market and the dealer ended up paying me $9500.00 cash fir the group. I never looked back. I spent $5k and paid all my loans I had, then I took $3k and paid off all my medical bills, then with the remaining $2k I bought a 1oz Valcambi gold bar and a 1 kilo silver bar. Then 5 days later the guy who bought my notes calls me and tells me they are fake and he wants his money back. Now to preface he is a good customer and over the years has spent tens of thousands of dollars with me, he is in his eighties and wears hearing aids, he doesn’t remember me telling him I thought they were fake, (even though I gad said it numerous times). Also, remember a whole month passed after his first purchase, and I gad no intention of selling any more of the notes until he called me at home and asked for the rest of them to buy. So, being he is a good customer, and honestly a friend I accepted the notes back. Normally, my stance on sakes at the flea market is “no refunds, as is, where is, no warranties”, but when you get into multiple thousands of dollars it’s not so cut and dried. So, I took them back and now am on a interest free, repayment plan at $500.00/month until the debt is paid. I just passed the second month. So I got all the notes back, except the initial group, which he sold and has told me he is trying to get them back but can’t, so I’m just not taking those back since they have changed now too many hands, whatever. He will have to take a bite of the sh1t sandwich too.
So anyone want to buy some Chinese notes?

[Recyclersteve]

Wow-what a story!!

[MaxGravy]

Wow! What a roller coaster ride. Fascinating story. Thanks for sharing.

[shinnosuke]

I agree with Steve and Max. Great story. Is there a website dedicated to teaching people about counterfeit paper money? Perhaps you could donate to them to prevent others from being deceived.

[frugi]

I agree with Steve and Max. Great story. Is there a website dedicated to teaching people about counterfeit paper money? Perhaps you could donate to them to prevent others from being deceived.

There are some small websites. But I have probably the largest collection of contemporary counterfeit Chinese currency collections with the most varieties all in one place. I’m thinking about collaborating with a couple other folks and writing a book about how to tell the difference.

[shinnosuke]

I agree with Steve and Max. Great story. Is there a website dedicated to teaching people about counterfeit paper money? Perhaps you could donate to them to prevent others from being deceived.

There are some small websites. But I have probably the largest collection of contemporary counterfeit Chinese currency collections with the most varieties all in one place. I’m thinking about collaborating with a couple other folks and writing a book about how to tell the difference.

I’ll buy an autographed copy if you publish a book.