Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Tax delinquent's diamond receives record bid of 93 million yen

A 12.07-carat diamond seized from a delinquent taxpayer fetched a record bid of 93.15 million yen ($1.13 million) in an online public auction on Nov. 26.
The diamond was put on the block by the Tokyo Regional Taxation Bureau, which had expected to receive 29.6 million yen for the gem.
 This diamond sold for 93.15 million yen in an online government auction. (Provided by the National Tax Agency)
Instead, the successful bid more than tripled that amount and was the highest ever in a government online auction in Japan, excluding bids for real estate, according to officials of Yahoo Japan Corp. and Rakuten Auction Inc.
The tax bureau put on sale five diamonds, each with a certificate of authenticity by the Gemological Institute of America. The color and clarity of the 12.07-carat diamond both received top grades by the institute.
A total of 152 bids were made for the diamond during the four-day bidding session.
A 7.5-carat diamond, which was initially estimated at 40.8 million yen, received a bid of 75.55 million yen during the same session.
If successful bid prices exceed the amount of taxes in arrears, the difference is returned to the delinquent taxpayer.
The previous record bid in a government online auction was 46.19 million yen for the Rosa Rugosa, a cruise ship used in a Japan-Russia program that allowed for visa-free visits to the disputed Northern Territories off Hokkaido.
The Shari town government in Hokkaido put the aging ship up for auction in January. But the winning bidder did not pay, and the contract was scrapped.
The previous record for items auctioned by the National Tax Agency was 13.25 million yen for a Bentley, a British luxury vehicle.

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