By Allen Mincho, Bank Note Reporter

This January 2008 column for Bank Note Reporter marks the 10th year that my musings have appeared on a monthly basis. It has been a truly amazing ride that we in the currency market have enjoyed for the past decade, with a market that has widened beyond the scope of even the most optimistic prognosticator, with more buyers, sellers and dedicated collectors taking part than any observer could reasonably have predicted at the start of 1998.

The advent of truly unbiased and objective third-party grading, the explosion of modern research techniques into hitherto uncharted fields, the expansion by all of the major coin auction houses into the currency auction arena, and the realization by the numismatic community that currency was both undervalued and considerably scarcer than its metallic counterparts all have played a major role in defining where this market has progressed as we start 2008. Read Full Story