‘H’ races to riches: car plate fetches HK$20 million at Hong Kong auction

A personalised car number plate featuring the letter “H” has fetched HK$20 million (US$2.55 million) at a government auction, the fourth-most-expensive one sold in Hong Kong at 4,000 times its reserve price. Other high bids at Sunday’s Chinese New Year auction of vehicle registration marks included the plates “30” at HK$4.55 million, “101” at HK$1.01 million and “2288” at HK$470,000.

The single-letter H plate drew the top bid among the 49 plates sold, going to a man who outbid three rivals in a...