When a banknote has a tendency to sell for $25+ in VF condition, and I manage to purchase two for the price of $23, I am quite happy, especially when the banknotes feature King George VI. I have been lucky to purchase two one pound banknotes from 1942, from down under. This Australian banknote is a great investment, seeing as many older Australian banknotes command premiums, even in worn conditions. Now I have one for my collection, and one for my investment!

Australia 1 Pound from 1942 (p26b)

Sri Lanka has a long history of occupancy by foreign powers, some of which include India, China, the Dutch, and the British. This banknote is clearly a result of British occupancy as it features king George VI at center. The banknote is almost a uniface piece of paper money, except for a serial number and prefix on the back. I have recently got a small collection of these notes, which include 10 cent, 25 cent, and 50 cent denominations. These are selling for $1-$8 in anything less than UNC condition, but I find it best to bid on a small lot of these, which can be found on eBay quite often.

Ceylon p44a: 25 Cents from 1942

I’m afraid I may have overpaid for this one, considering that it has a centerhole, but I purchased an old Australian 1 Pound banknote for $49.00. I found that the front face of the note is not very interesting, though it does have the face of King George V at right. The back side is what caught my attention. It features Capt. Cook’s landing at Botany Bay at center. The catalog has this one at $150 in VG condition, so I hope that it will pay off in the longer run.

Australia p16c: 1927 1 Pound Banknote

Its in bad shape, but I have purchased a Hong Kong one dollar bill featuring King George the sixth. This banknote can be found in several colors: green, blue, and purple. There are also similar banknotes featuring King George the fifth and Queen Elizabeth II.

Here’s mine:

In the 1940′s Malaya printed an issue of money, ranging from 1 cent to 10,000 dollars featuring the portrait of King George VI. As mentioned in a more recent post, p11, the $1 bill is readily available for a very affordable price of around $10USD and is a solid investment in my books. Picks 6-10 are also available often and encompass the fractional currency of 1, 5, 10, 20, and 50 cents. Pick 12, which is a $5 bill is not seen too often, and p13, the banknote featured here is up for auction often, though at a premium. I purchased this one for $41.55USD. A good investment none-the-less, I think.

I never knew that Southern Rhodesia was ever its own state / country, that it existed, nor that it issued its own paper money from 1943-1955. I actually realized that such a place existed as a result of an eBay auction where I also acquired banknotes from Rhodesia and Rhodesia and Nyasaland. But I digress ..

I managed to snag this five shilling note, in Fine condition, dated 1.1.1943 for $41.50 USD. This is of substantial investment value. I always have an eye on eBay auctions, and this is the first time I ever came across such a banknote. This is a clear sign of the rarity of this item; not to mention that it appears to be the first banknote issued for this country, even though it is pick #8 in the Standard Catalog of World Paper Money.

Check it out:

Southern Rhodesia Pick 8 -- Five Shillings from 1943 featuring King George IV.

The back of Southern Rhodesia Pick 8 -- Five Shillings from 1943.

Almost any banknote featuring King George VI is of some value. The following banknote is not in the greatest of conditions, but most of the 1937 notes with a denomination of $5 or more are, eventually if not now, are good investments. So I could not resist bidding on this $10 note — throw in free shipping and I’m sold!

$20.50USD for this one, but she’s a beauty!

Canada $10 from 1937 -- front.

Canada $10 from 1937 -- back.

Alright, so the following is based on a trend that I have noticed over the last half year: all banknotes from former British Empire states (ie. Belize, British Honduras, etc) that feature any of the kings or queens are going up in value far quicker than the rest of the banknote market. Yes, they have always been worth a little more than most notes on average, but I remember bidding on some relatively inexpensive paper money from Fiji and New Zealand not too long ago, as two examples, and now the same notes are going for a considerable amount of cash.

This having been said, of the inexpensive side of things is seems as though only one queen/king series remains within reach of the hobby collector and investor: I am referring to the notes of the Bahamas. In particular I am referring to Pick 17 thru to Pick 74, all of which feature the young Queen Elizabeth II. These notes can still be bought at bargain prices. $1/2, $1, and $3 (yes, a three dollar note) notes can still be purchased in VF-UNC condition for $3-$10USD on eBay. I strongly recommend stocking up on these if you are an investor.

Bahamas One Dollar note from 1965