SIBU: Collectors of old bank notes and coins have been told not to take the net worth of such collectible items at face value as published in social media.
President of Sarawak Philatelic and Numismatic Society John Goh Cheong Hua said lately there had been many stories in Facebook telling collectors that old bank notes and coins fetched high prices just because of their age.
According to Goh, most people who had old bank notes and coins had been misled by such stories.
“In Facebook, people are told that just any old bank notes and coins could be sold for several hundreds or thousands of Ringgit. This can be true only if they are uncirculated and in very good condition,” he said.
Goh, who has more than 30 years of experience in the matter, said many collectors who came to him were disappointed when they were told that their old bank notes were not worth a lot.
“Just recently, a group of seven collectors from West Malaysia came to my shop in very high spirits with their old bank notes but left disappointed after that. After examining the notes, I told them they had no value at all,” he said.
Goh explained that it was because their tattered notes were in very poor conditions due to excessive handling.
When the group refused to accept his comment, he told them to get a second opinion from experienced collectors.
Another incident was when a person came to him with a large number of old Rajah Brooke coins.
“The man asked me for the value of his collection. I said to him that if he wanted to give them to me, I would not want them because of their poor condition. Several journalists from Singapore had also called me up, enquiring whether stories on old bank notes in Facebook were true.
“The prices of old bank notes depend on their conditions. For example, a new RM10 note is worth up to RM200. The price will drop by 50 to 60 per cent if it was circulated.
“Its value will drop further over the years as its condition worsens when it has passed through many hands,” he said while showing an official book on old bank notes.
Asked how a person would know if an old bank note was worth a lot of money, he replied, “Check whether it is yellowish, has folding lines, is dirty or torn.”
