BANGKOK, Thailand – A rare 1990 Thai 10-baht coin fetched a winning bid of 2,540,000 baht during the Treasury Department’s inaugural online auction. The digital event drew 23 active bidders who submitted 52 bids within 30 minutes, driving the price up dramatically from its starting point of 300,000 baht.
Bimetallic in design, the piece features a portrait of King Rama IX in a ceremonial gown on its central gold-colored alloy, with the Prang of Wat Arun on the reverse. It remains exceptionally rare among collectors because only 100 units were originally minted for the 1990 World Coin Conference.
The piece was evaluated using the international Coin Grading standard, receiving a high rating of MS66 on a scale where MS70 is the maximum. Achieving an MS66 score for a circulating issue reflects prime condition and flawless quality. By adopting this global standard and transparent digital bidding, officials aim to connect the local market to an international coin industry valued in the tens of billions of dollars.
The winning bidder, who initially budgeted 2 million baht, noted that direct provenance provided complete confidence in its authenticity, projecting that the coin’s value could eventually reach 3 to 4 million baht as global interest expands. Following this successful launch, the Treasury Department plans to host regular online coin auctions on the 17th of every month. (TNA)
