Rare 50p coin sells for £155 and you could have one in your change

A sought-after 50p piece has sold for a huge £155 after sparking something of a bidding war on eBay. The coin, minted in 2009 to mark the anniversary of Kew Gardens’ opening, is thought to be worth around £145 by experts.

One lucky eBay seller has therefore had an extra cash boost, having sold their coin – which bears the famed Chinese Pagoda on one side and the late Queen Elizabeth II’s portrait on the other – on Sunday. The Royal Mint said around 210,000 of the coins were minted, making the money piece one of the UK’s rarest.

The listing described the item as “2009 Genuine Kew Gardens 50p Coin In Very Good Circulated Condition *Rare Find*” and started the bidding at just one penny. But after a 34-way bidding war ensued, the price jumped up and up, before it finally went for £155.

The buyer also had to pay £2.70 for Royal Mail tracked 48 hour delivery, after making the winning bid at the weekend.

Experts estimate that there are still hundreds of thousands of Kew Gardens 50p coins in circulation, so it could be well worth checking purses and wallets. The first thing you should do, should you come across one, is check the date on it.

This is because the Royal Mint reissued a batch of the coins in 2019 to celebrate 50 years of the 50p, and this version doesn’t tend to sell for as much. That said, these ones have been known to sell for around £70 or £80 on eBay so it could still be well worth putting it up for auction.