A century after the ill-fated Bank of Vancouver opened, one of its $5 bills is expected to fetch $50,000 to $100,000 at auction. What makes this $5 bill special is its serial number; 000001. It is literally the first $5 bill issued by the Bank of Vancouver, which operated between 1910 and 1914. It also doesn't seem to have been ever put into circulation, because it is in excellent shape.
"It's not in mint shape but it's in very fine condition," said Charles Moore of Moore Numismatic Auctions, who will be selling it June 24 in Toronto. "It was folded three times, and appears to have been carried in a wallet. But it's in much finer condition than most large size banknotes of that time."
In fact, Moore thinks it's in the best shape of any of the nine Bank of Vancouver notes that are still known to exist; six fives, two 10s and one 20. Three of the nine are in the National Currency Collection in Ottawa, which means there are only six Bank of Vancouver notes in private hands.
Number 000001 is supposed to have been given to one of the bank's directors, although which one is unknown. Moore said this owner died in the 1950s and the note went to a relative who lived in Calgary, who sold it to a Calgary coin dealer.
Moore collected number 1 notes and bought it off the Calgary dealer in the 1980s for $8,000. But he wound up trading it to a B.C. collector.
"I had a client who saw me buy it and said 'You're a coin dealer, you're not allowed to collect,'" Moore recounts with a laugh.
"So I wound up trading him for some other things I wanted for my collection: he had a number of serial number 1 notes. It then went to the Victoria area. He died and his daughter called me for an appraisal on it earlier this year. She had no idea of the value, and I said '$40,000 or $50,000.' She said 'Would you sell it?'"
The Bank of Vancouver was launched on July 30, 1910 in the midst of a real estate and industrial boom. Its founders included some of B.C.'s most prominent capitalists, including the lieutenant-governor, James Paterson, and future Vancouver mayor William Malkin, of Malkin Bowl fame. But the boom went bust, and the bank went out of business on Dec. 14, 1914.
"The boom in Vancouver and Victoria started dying in 1912," explains Ron Greene, B.C.'s premier banknote expert. "The money that had been flowing from German and English sources stopped, and in fact started retreating from B.C., because they knew a war was coming."
The Bank of Vancouver limped along for a couple of years, but fell after the collapse of another local company.
"In October 1914 the Dominion Trust company collapsed after the managing director committed suicide," said Greene. "They were badly hit by the collapse of the real estate speculation. This fellow knew there was no way out, so he committed suicide. At first it was portrayed as an accident, then the trust company didn't reopen. That caused a ripple that really pushed the Bank of Vancouver to the edge."
The Bank of Vancouver issued $5, $10, $20, $50 and $100 bills, in a large format that's 50-per-cent bigger than modern bills. No circulating $50s or $100s are known to still exist, but there are proofs. The rarity of any Bank of Vancouver bills makes them very desirable; a well worn Bank of Vancouver $5 bill came up for sale in 2008, and sold for $28,500.
Moore expects this one to attract spirited bidding from several collectors, both in Canada and the U.S.
"I have received calls from three people in Vancouver, two of them very well known," he said.
"I can't tell you who out of confidentiality, but you would know their names. There's another very prominent Canadian banknote collector who lives in Texas who is flying up for the sale who has spent millions of dollars on banknotes. It should be quite an auction."
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