I hope this article finds all our readers doing well and ready to wrap up a successful 2025 as we head into 2026 and a new year. At the end of November, I was fortunate to attend the Macau International Coin Convention, traditionally one of China’s premier numismatic shows. This year the show was held at the Sofitel Macau at Ponte 16 from November 27-28, 2025 and featured dozens of exhibitors. I have been attending the Macau show for about 10 years now, and the Macau Numismatic Society (“MNS”) and its chairman, Mr. David Cho, always do a phenomenal job in hosting the Macau show. I recommend to our readers if they ever get a chance to visit an opening ceremony of the Macau show. During the opening ceremony, the MNS put on exhibits displaying numerous Chinese coin, paper money and other numismatic rarities throughout the showroom to be viewed by the public. The highlight of the opening ceremony is the launch of the MNS panda medal, and the ceremony isconcluded by the ribbon cutting and official opening of the Macau coin show. On the evening of the opening ceremony, the MNS hosts a banquet at a top restaurant in Macau in which a feast with numerous courses is served to the MNS members and guests. The opening night banquet is nothing short of remarkable in terms of a feast (this year my personal favorite, a roasted suckling pig was served to every table), and a multitude of numismatic door prizes are given thoughout the night to those in attendance. It is truly a highlight of my year to attend the MNS banquet and feast with friends, new and old, while networking and discussing the happenings in the numismatic industry throughout the world.The first day of the Macau coin show as usual drew collectors and dealers from around the world, and was a success as record high prices in both gold and silver continued to dominate the numismatic market. It was especially great seeing many ofmy dealer and numismatic industry friends at the Macau show such as Dr. Frank Laiacona (East-West Collectibles in Manila, Philippines), Adriel Fo (House of Collectibles in Singapore), Patrick Sun (CCG Shanghai office), Michael Chou (Champion Auction) and Denny Huhn (House of Coins in Quickborn, Germany) to name a few. Most all of the dealers I talked to had a great first day of the show and all the makings were there for it to be the most successful Macau coin show ever, then the unexpected happen. Like in previous major coin shows throughout the year, the 2025 Chinese Silver Dragon Dollar CitCards were to be distributed in a special limited-edition Macau ICC holder to the public on a first come-first served basis during the first two days of the Macau show. The extreme high demand for these coins due to their value on the market and limited availability has created an unprecedented excitement among numismatic collectors and investors alike. At this year’s ANA World’s Fair of Money in Oklahoma City, Hong Kong Coin Show, and Singapore International Coin Fair, these 2025 Chinese Silver Dragon Dollar CitiCards were released in their respective unique carded versions, and in each case the high demand for these coins resulted in a sell-out and huge aftermarket premiums for the coins. The anticipation for the Macua version of the 2025 Chinese Silver Dragon Macau CitiCard coins was at a fever pitch, and this caused a huge turnout by thousands of the public to get one of these coins during their release on the first day of the Macau show. CCG Hong Kong was even on-site for individuals to submit these coins to be graded and placed in a special Macau ICC label and holder. Many of the public arrived early and stood in long lines to receive one of these coveted Macau CitiCard silver dragon coins. Unfortunately, not everyone could receive a coin due to their limited nature and a mob showed up to the Macau show hours before the show opened up on the second day. This mob filled the entrance to the Macau show, would not move, and thus resulted in the Macau show being closed by the local Macau police and hotel staff. This was truly unfortunate as the Macua show could not continue, and this disappointed the many dealers, MNS staff, and collectors in attendance. Many numismatic professionals that have been in the industry for many years, including myself, all commented that they had never seen anything quite like what they experienced at this year’s Macau show. Although the Macau Coin show came to an early end, the Champion Auction was able to take place on November 29, 2025 and was a huge success. Highlights of this year’s ChampionMacau auction included and incredibly rare 1926 Chang Tso Lin in Military Uniform Silver Dollar Copper-Nickel Pattern (L&M 868 NGC MS 62) that brought $560,000 USD plus the hammer. Chang Tso Lin was a warlord who gained control of Beijing in 1926 but was forced to flee two years later and subsequently assassinated making this pattern a true Chinese numismatic rarity. Also in the auction was a 1911 Chinese Silver Dollar with raised veins on leaves (NGC AU 58) an extremely rare variety, a 1898 China-ANHWEI Silver Dollar (Flat Four with Small Rosette variety, NGC MS 66) which is the finest known and from the Hsi/NC collection, and a 1897 China-KIANGNAN Silver Dollar (Herringbone edge variety, NGC MS 63) commonly known as “Old Kiangnan” from the NC collection, all of which each brought hundreds of thousands of dollars. From these auction results, it appears the vintage Chinese coin market is as strong as ever, especially with rarer patterns and vintage silver dollars in scarcer varieties. The Opening Ceremony, MNS Banquet, and first day of the Macau coin were amazing as always and it was great seeing many of my dealer and collector friends in Macau. Although unfortunate the show had to come to an abrupt early end, it is exciting to see the public energized by a numismatic product like the 2025 Chinese Silver Dragon CitiCards. It is a great time to be in numismatics as we are currently experiencing alltime highs in both gold and silver! I want to wish all our readers
overseas an upcoming Happy Year of the Horse (my year as I was born in 1978 although I have been told that it is not until the following year after your year that one receives good luck), and I look forward to setting up at the upcoming Winter FUN show in Orlando, Florida on January 8-11, 2026 with my good friends Michael Chou, President of Champion Auction, and Philip Kapaan, a world coin dealer at Kapaan and Mades GbR located in Bochum, Germany. Until next time, I wish you all the best in your numismatic pursuits and have a prosperous 2026.