Why This California License Plate Is Valued At Over $24 Million

The most expensive license plate in the world isn't just ridiculously costly, it's also the first of its kind. A California vanity plate comprised of only two characters, "MM," is currently being valued (and maybe sold) for a ludicrous price of $24.3 million. No, it isn't made of precious metals, but rather, it's because there are only 12 other examples of plates containing two repeating characters, according to DuPont Registry. While this alone already makes it a rarity, it also comes with the prestige of being the first license plate in the world to be paired with a Non-Fungible Token (NFT) as well.

This license plate comes with a QR code embedded on its back side, which links to an address showing proof-of-ownership of the NFT. This makes the vanity plate tied to a digital asset that's priced at 5,888 Ethereum, which is worth about $11.1 million as of writing. It's possible to transfer vanity plates to new owners in California, making this historic license plate/NFT combo a valuable investment that can change hands multiple times (via Motor1). The question now is, will it even be worth investing in?

When it comes to top-selling license plates, the most expensive one ever sold in the US was a Delaware plate containing the number "11," which went for a cool $675,000 in 2008. Delaware reportedly started issuing plates in numerical order, with the lowest numbers serving as a "status symbol" for the wealthy (via CBS). Emmert Auctions' Butch Emmert told the publication that having a low number license plate in Delaware is "more important" than driving a Rolls Royce. So, if Delaware's double one license plate is worth six figures, then why is California's double M vanity plate being sold for over thirty times more?

The current owner (and potentially seller) of the MM plate, Michael Modecki, told in an email his reasoning behind the MM plate's ludicrous price point is actually pretty sound considering it's more than just a sheet of aluminum. Modecki believes both the MM plate and its paired NFT are already valuable on their own, but when combined, can be "worth so much more." For starters, its NFT alone not only has a market value of over $11 million but also serves as a means to authenticate the plate's ownership history. This makes virtually anyone capable of verifying its legitimacy even decades from now. When taking into account the plate's rarity, as well as its proof-of-ownership being contained in a tamper-resistant decentralized blockchain, it becomes a package that's as unique as it is genuine.

The most expensive license plate ever sold reached a price of $14.3 million in 2008, at an auction in Abu Dhabi. In an interview with ABC, the auction's managing director, Abdulla al Mannaie, claims that vanity plates are "good business," saying they often lead to over 20% annual yield. Al Mannaie claims there's "zero percent depreciation" in such investments, adding that the value of significant license plates continues to increase even if the cars they're attached to depreciate. That said, Modecki believes there's a higher probability of outselling Abu Dhabi's $14.3 million plates in California, as the state has four times the population compared to the UAE, leading to a bigger pool of potential buyers.

According to Modecki, California has over seven times more billionaires in just one state than in the entirety of the UAE. Sure, the MM plate's $10 million more than the previous record-holder, but The Plate Broker explains that the $14 million plates in 2008 would have an adjusted price of $19 million in 2022 after inflation, which wouldn't be too far from the MM plate's asking price. Additionally, about 20% of its $24 million value goes to expenses stemming from listing fees, marketing, commissions, NFT gas fees, and the like. Given its rarity, historical significance, and symmetrical appeal, the MM plate could not only be the most expensive license plate ever, but it's also capable of saying a lot with just two letters.