Fancy car plate fetches Dh4m, ‘lucky’ mobile number sold for DH3.2M
10 number plates and 21 exclusive mobile numbers from du and Etisalat auctioned to support the Mothers’ Endowment campaign
The vehicle number plate V39 was sold for a whopping Dh4 million (nearly $1.1 million) in Dubai on Sunday at an event hosted for a charity.
In total, 10 fancy car number plates and 21 exclusive mobile numbers from telecom companies du and Etisalat were auctioned to support the Dh1-billion Mothers' Endowment campaign launched by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-president and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
The campaign raised a total of over Dh38.095 million, including just over Dh29 million through the sale of exclusive car number plates. On the other hand, bids for etisalat by e& special numbers totalled Dh4.135 million and du special numbers raised Dh4.935 million.
But it was the unique mobile numbers containing 7 series — considered a lucky number but also resembles the UAE'S 7 emirates — that saw the most exciting and fierce competition among the bidders.
Among the exclusive mobile numbers, 058-7777777 saw fierce competition among the participants and was the highest grosser among unique numbers put up for auction, fetching Dh3.2 million. The bidding for this unique number started with Dh100,000 and within a couple of seconds, it reached Dh3 million. Similarly, other numbers which contained mainly 7 digits also saw competition among the bidders. Another unique number 0545555555 was also grabbed for a whopping Dh2.875 million.
The auction began with the Roads and Transport Authority's (RTA) U79 number plate with a starting price of Dh800,000 and closed with Dh2.55 million. Most of the numbers were snapped up between Dh2.5 million and Dh3 million, except V39 which was grabbed for Dh4 million.
A large number of UAE nationals and expatriates attended 'The Most Noble Numbers' charity auction. The auction was organised by Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives (MBRGI), in collaboration with Emirates Auction and with support with the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), etisalat by e& and Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (du).
The highest bid for a Dubai number plate was recorded last year when P7 was grabbed for a whopping Dh55 million after fierce bidding among the participants.