'Generous' spending 120 billion to buy license plates

(Baonghean.vn) - A vehicle registration plate with the number “1” was bid for 18 million AED (equivalent to 120 billion VND) at an auction in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

License plates were auctioned in the UAE in 2008. Photo: Getty Images.

The businessman who bought the plate, Arif Ahmed al-Zarouni, told Gulf News: "My ambition is to always be number one."

The closing price of the plate was 18 times the starting price, however it is not the most expensive plate in the UAE.

In 2008, a license plate of the Abu Dhabi Financial Center, UAE was sold for 52.2 million AED (equivalent to 360 billion VND) at an auction. The license plate belongs to tycoon Zarouni in the Sharjah area, the third richest emirate of the UAE.

In addition to the number “1”, 60 other plates were auctioned on June 4. The most popular numbers were 12, 22, 50, 100, 333, 777, 1000, 2016, 2020 and 99999. The auction brought in a total of 50 million AED (equivalent to 320 billion VND).

Thanh Hien

(According to the Guardian)