The Dubai based Indian expat and chairman of the RSG International, Balwinder Sahni, bought a unique car number plate D5 for a whopping Dh. 33 million at an aunction conducted by Road and Transport Authority.
“People were increasing the bids in their hundreds of thousands, I was raising the bids by Dh1 million” Sahani said.
He further continued to narrate “Dh50 million, Dh100 million, whatever the bidding would have reached, I would have bought it”.
The reason that the 44-year-old was so adamant to get his hands on the D5 numer plate was, “Because number 9 is my lucky number. D is the fourth letter in the alphabet and add that to 5, it makes 9.”He also admitted that it was a “Tough bidding war” in which he was determined to win”. He said that he had planned “no budget” to make D5 number plate a part of his collection. “I like collecting unique number plates and I am proud to have got this number” Sahani said, adding “I have collected 10 number plates so far and I am looking forward to having more. It’s a passion. This number will go to one of my Rolls Royce”. Sahani is the proud owner of 6 Rolls Royces and he plans to embed this newly bought number plate to his black one.
His passion for collecting special number plates also led him to buy yet another number plate at the same RTA auction which he purchased for Dh 1 million at the JW Marriott Marquis Hotel.
A total of 80 fancy number plates had been auctioned under the hammer at this event. The money raised from the auction of these plate numbers will go to charity.
This was, however, not the first time that Sahani has spent a fortune on bidding for a car’s unique number plate. In 2014, he bid Dh. 24 million for the number plate 9.
This year, Shani, who wore a blue Kandora, among those in white, became the highest bidder of all times at the RTA auction.An Indian businessman has paid a whopping $9 million to buy a single-digit car registeration plate in Dubai, adding another coveted number plate to his collection.
Balwinder Sahani bought number plate "D5" for 33 million Dirhams at the Roads and Transport Authority's number plate auction on Saturday.
Sahani, also known as Abu Sabah, is the owner of RSG International, a property management company, with interests in the UAE, Kuwait, India and the US.
"I like collecting unique number plates and I am proud to have got this number. I like number nine and D5 adds up to nine, so I went for it," Sahani was quoted as saying by the Gulf News.
He said that last year he bought the vehicle number plate O9 for 25 million Dirhams.
"I have collected 10 number plates so far and I am looking forward to having more. It's a passion. This number will go to one of my Rolls Royces," he added.
The number generated great interest among the participants with the bid starting at 20 million Dirham.
More than 300 bidders participated at the live auction which takes place every two months, witnessing fierce battle between bidders for some unique numbers.
An Indian businessman has paid a whopping USD 9 million to buy a single-digit car registeration plate in Dubai, adding another coveted number plate to his collection.
Balwinder Sahani bought number plate “D5” for 33 million Dirhams at the Roads and Transport Authority’s number plate auction yesterday.
Sahani, also known as Abu Sabah, is the owner of RSG International, a property management company, with interests in the UAE, Kuwait, India and the US.
“I like collecting unique number plates and I am proud to have got this number. I like number nine and D5 adds up to nine, so I went for it,” Sahani was quoted by saying by the Gulf News.
He said that last year he bought the vehicle number plate O9 for 25 million Dirhams.
“I have collected 10 number plates so far and I am looking forward to having more. It’s a passion. This number will go to one of my Rolls Royces,” he added.
The number generated great interest among the participants with the bid starting at 20 million Dirham.
More than 300 bidders participated at the live auction which takes place every two months, witnessing fierce battle between bidders for some unique numbers.
Eighty unique numbers were on offer yesterday ranging from one two five digits.
The other number plate that attracted big money was “Q77” which was bought by an Emirati bidder for 4.52 million Dirhams.
A few other numbers bagged more than a million including “P27” that went for 2.14 million Dirhams.
A few other numbers bagged more than a million including “P27” that went for 2.14 million Dirhams.
In June this year, Emirati businessman Arif Al Zarooni, bought Number 1 plate for 18 million Dirhams in Sharjah.
Indian businessman Balwinder Sahani paid 33 million dirhams ($9 million) for a Dubai license plate for one of his Rolls Royces.
Plate ‘D5’ was sold at a government auction on Saturday, according to local media reports. Sahani, who owns a property management company, also purchased another plate for 1 million dirhams. He bought the number O9 last year at an auction for 25 million dirhams, Sahani told Gulf News.
Auctions of license plate numbers are a big draw in the United Arab Emirates where a shorter number is a status symbol coveted by the wealthy. In 2008, businessman Saeed Al Khouri, paid 52.2 million dirhams for the number 1 license plate in Abu Dhabi, a record for the country.
Eighty number plates went under the hammer at Saturday’s auction in Dubai. Bids for the ‘D5’ plate started at 20 million dirhams and the proceeds of the sale will go to Dubai’s Roads & Transport Authority
No comments:
Write comments