2005 to 2010:

A trip to Ireland in 2004 convinced me that the first "Duisenberg Euros" were short lived & the notes to seek.  I had picked up an easy Lady Lavery 10/- P-63 note from a collector friend who recently became a World Dealer.  He kept urgng me to seek World currencies but I felt like I had my hands full with my Bank of Canada sets.  Since that time, there have been days that I kicked myself for not following his advice more seriously. The reason?  Many World notes were quite inexpensive back then & their prices have jumped up considerably since.  There were also many tough series being issued at the turn of the Millennium as well. After my Dublin trip, I tried to get some "Duisenberg" signed Euros but ended up picking mostly "Trichet" examples. It took me about 10 years before I found sellers willing to sell the first signature Euros. This helped me get side-tracked & discover the beauty of pre-Euros! 

2015:

It took a while (going down a lot of blind alleys) but I did start to seek the tougher nations usually by following hunches from general assumptions about smaller nations with lower currency needs, hence lower numbers issued. 

One of the first circulated notes I bid on was the 1944 100 Francs from Luxembourg (below).  When I saw the note listed, for the first time, I was struck by the fact that it lacked a prefix. This was one reasons I placed a bid on it and happily won! Although it is a VF note (which looks remarkable well preserved & more in line with an EF grade in person) I placed a bid on it anyway even though I had vowed to chase only UNC notes! When the note arrived I thought I had really got a great collectible note because I have yet to see a P-47 100 Franc without the A prefix!  I am also pretty certain that it would likely grade VF35 EPQ because the paper is so crisp & fresh looking should I certify it.  I always liked the idea of getting notes from this tiny, micro-nation, so I picked up the other two last year. I must admit that neither the Luxembourg 20 nor the 50 Francs (P-54b or P-55b) were very well priced in UNC so they were not cheap.  However, I have seldom seen them offered so I was tired of waiting around and decided to "pull the trigger" as they say.  I have often seen AU or lower (more circulated) examples.  Perhaps I paid "future prices" on the two notes but I do feel (as I wrote on C&C) that they will quickly become popular & the prices will rise with time (so no harm done)! 

I cannot stop being impressed by the artistic designs on French series & doubt I ever will! I have included a few favourites here (P-154b & P-160d).  The 100 Francs has tough varieties (P-153 & P-154a) but I picked up mine because I admired the artistry. The 500 Francs was first issued in 1994 & it is the most common variety (558,000,000). The 1996 ("b" version) had 18M issued (the least) & 2000 (my "d" date) had 36M issued which is also less common. I bought it because I have always admired Marie Currie, the scientist who pioneered radiation research and succeeded in a male dominated profession. The 1910 "Fleet 100" note from Germany was hard to resist as its huge format punches up a big wow-factor. It portrays Germania & the Imperial fleet. It is a very easy note to get but much tougher in GEM UNC. Likewise can be said for the 100 Pesetas (P-169c) but it is not expensive even in UNC!

I recommend seeking overlooked pre-Euro such as the 100 Francs from Belgium (P-140a).  This is the note with only 2 signatures seen on the front and no signatures on the back (3% of the combined P-140 & P-142). Two signature varieties only lasted 3 years and then they modified with the two signatures on both sides (4 signatures). The reason for the change is unclear but you will normally see the first/early version (P-140) incorrectly attributed to a P-142 modified version. It can be very frustrating when trying to hunt down an early signature version (P-140) and so many sellers have their incorrectly labelled.  Of all the notes entered on Numista, only 18% of users have the P-140 (early) version. I recommend getting it before sellers realize how tough the first series is!

Everything I have written about Belgium could be applied to Finland, except perhaps their designs. Early Finnish series have basic designs.  Later Finnish series (pre-Euro) have modern designs similar to the Netherlands and they rarely changed much. Few understood the multitood of signatures or the "Litt A" or "Litt B" series modifications.  My point is just try to get UNC examples without the designations because you may find this a challenge. Buy them now rather than waiting for the rest of the world to get into the swing of it (as collectors have done for Bulgaria which just joined the EU)  I have added a common 20 Marka (Litt A) version just so you can get an idea of the more common "garden variety."

Latvia was a "no-brainer" since they were becoming popular right before their switch to the Euro. With a high exchange rate I knew these notes were not very common to begin with and would some day be in demand by more collectors. If you can get an earlier series, I would go for it!

Lithuania was just as much an obvious choice to save as Latvia. I have not found them as difficult to come by as Latvia so they have been much easier & less expensive!

Other Overlooked nations:

Iran fascinated me from the "get-go." Early versions of the Shaw (from Bank Melli rather than Bank Markazi) also were appealing. I would definitely encourage collectors to chase the currency from this fascinating part of the world. Do not let politics interfere with your collecting ambitions!

Ceylon became a target nation due to the fact that they featured Queen Elizabeth (QEII) on their early notes. After I bought a rare VG-F 1952 Five Rupees (P-51), I took a second look at this nation's issues. I soon discovered that early versions without her portrait were also tough (yet less ardently sought). Due to the less "wow factor" (& less demand) these notes came at a pittance in comparison to notes with the QEII portrait.  Yes, they weren't quite as tough, but many had NRI ratings higher than 50 (& these were only 2 & 10 Rupee notes, fairly low denominations!)  There are many other Indian nations that are highly sought after too. I think the series from Bangladesh & Pakistan should also be considered.

South Vietnam & Thailand were "no brainers" for me because I have always been a big fan of French Indochina, yet have repeatedly failed at obtaining a clean example! So, it made sense to start seeking early independence notes (post Indochina) which also can be tough. They're typically quite common in circulated grades but finding one in problem-free UNC can be challenging. The 100 Dong pictured below is the "b" version with Le Van Duyet's head as a watermark. Try to find the "a" demon head watermarked variety (if you can). That 100 Dong along with the 5 Dong (P-13) have NRI of 30 & I would not consider that tough but getting them in UNC is the big challenge.

*TPG (Third Party Graded: A few notes were certified by PMG but the majority (90%) of my notes purchased were uncertified.  I later submitted my first purchase (100 & 500 Francs from France) to PMG and they all came back with UNC65 or better.

From my personal collection:

Conclusions:

• There are many overlooked World notes which typically come from smaller nations but this is changing with Reddit & Social Media increasing public exposure to tough micronation currencies.

• I have found most mid to higher Pre-Euro denominations from smaller nations (Belgium or Luxembourg) to be tougher to obtain in any grade. Buying examples in UNC should serve you well partly b/c the demand remains tepid & partly b/c collectors don't realize that some of these are quite hard to get in original (or EPQ) condition.

• Trying to get UNC notes from Ceylon & Iran may prove to be tougher than you expect! You cannot go wrong with getting notes from the QEII era (for Ceylon) & early Shaw notes (from Iran). I don't care for notes from the Islamic Republic because their issue was massive (compared to the earlier series). Check wholesale sites which sell 10 note lots (& bundles) & you see the same deaker stock: (Islamic Republic of Iran, Venezuela & Zimbabwe).  

• Set some LIMITS (for me, it was no or few high denominations for pre-Euro).  I bought some French, German & Spanish notes but have accepted the fact that these are plentiful. TPG notes was not one of my priorities when seeking these sets.

My collector radar was set for:

• Tougher nations Most of my pre-Euro nations are from tougher (smaller/overlooked) nations. However, I do not exclude some large formatted favourites (France, Germany & Spain).

• Early & Last series the first unrevised first series of design fails (Belgiums P-140 100 Francs) are generally "safe bets" to chase. It appears as if many sellers are confused by the early series (with signatures on one side) and the revised (signatures on both sides) series. Having said that, do no overlook LAST series either as these can be short.  Strive for high-end UNC examples!

• High grades Most of my Overlooked World notes are UNC but I also will attain higher circulated grades (VF+ & EPQ) examples of tougher varieties (like Ceylon or some African nations).

• NRI "numbers" high numbers sometimes indicate a tough series but this will not always hold true! For example, Numista has lumped the three year old Belgium 100 Francs P-140 with the eleven year old, common P-142 series so their NRI for both notes will be irrelevant.  Be vigilant & seek what you feel is a tougher & ignore Numista's misleading index! NOTE: please take a look at my comments made DEC 27th on Collector's Corner for further insight in using (or disregarding) the Numista Rarity Index (NRI).

Remember to:

• Popularity also determines a note's Book Value & must be considered.  All the high denominations from Belgium are tough but do you really want a 1000 or 10,000 Francs note if it will cost you a 100 Euros to sell it (& few people want it)? It is important to ask yourself some tough questions & remember your LIMITS (budget) before you start!

• I started collecting Iranian banknotes not because they were popular but more because they were unique: overprints on the Shaw's face fascinated me during Iran's Islamic revolution!  I also found them difficult to acquire (due to the USA's ban on anything from Iran). While popularity may factor in on a note's BV, do not let that deter you from chasing something different and fun to collect! Collect notes from Iran (or Russia, Iraq, etc) if you find them interesting!

Questions?

If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at notaphilyc@gmail.com 

LIST of WORLD Available