July 2025 Greensheet Market Analysis: New US Currency Discoveries

We acknowledge Chad Greenbach and Jay Recher at Paper Money Guarantee for one of them, and fractional currency specialists Robert J. Kravitz and Richard Melamed for the other.

The first is a previously unknown series of 1880 $2 Legal Tender Note that will be a new Fr.-52a. It is a situation like the $1 of the same series, the recently added Fr.-28a, wherein the reverse is that of the previous catalog number (Fr.-27 and Fr.-51) with “Series of 1880” printed in the top margin of the reverse and "Printed at the Bureau Engraving & Printing. Treasury Dep!" in the reverse’s bottom margin. The obverse of the new number is the same as Fr.-52, a large brown seal and the signatures of B.K. Bruce and A.U. Wyman. PMG reports that these notes are known on front plate D44 and back plate 8 notes.

The new Fr.-52a replaces two notes that have never been seen. The current note with number 52a is an unknown Bruce-Wyman with a large red plain seal, which will now be known as Fr.-52b. The old 52b, a Rosecrans-Jordan with plain red seal, also unknown, is now 52c. 

The revised fractional currency numbers concern new varieties of the always interesting and sometimes confusing 15 cent specimen notes with the busts of Generals William T. Sherman and Ulysses S. Grant. When the BEP’s currency proof sheets were sent to the Smithsonian Institution, they were digitally scanned and made available to the public on the Smithsonian’s website. When viewing the archival specimen sheets, it was discovered that five out of the six narrow margin obverses (20 to a sheet) contained “1” and “a” plate position designators in the same format as used on most of the third issue of fractional currency. None of the Grant Sherman specimens sold to the public by the BEP contained these designators. This discovery has necessitated new fractional Friedberg numbers (the first since the Fr.-1379a was added in 1962). They will be:

• Fr.-1272-SP (no "1", no "a")
• Fr.-1272a-SP (with "a")
• Fr.-1272b-SP (with "1")
• Fr.-1272c-SP (with the "1" & "a")

A full write-up on this new and exciting discovery will be published in a future issue of the SPMC Paper Money Magazine.

Global Collectibles Consulting (GCC) may be a new name in the realm of paper money grading, but Chad Hawk, the person behind it, is far from that. After a seventeen-year career at PMG, where he most recently was vice president, he has embarked on this new venture. GCC is not another grading service, it instead is meant to augment them.

Hawk, who says he has graded over $100 million in collectible currency, explains that his aim in an evolving collectible world is to guide investors and collectors on how to “protect value and maximize potential,” without bias.

At the core of this is GCC's Sticker Certification Program, a service intended to add an extra layer of quality assurance to graded banknotes through a Green and Gold sticker system. Banknotes that meet GCC’s strict criteria for market circulation receive a Green sticker (Evergreen Standard), indicating that the note upholds a strong standard for its assigned grade. Exceptional notes, ones that exceed typical quality standards, receive a gold sticker (Gold Standard), signifying an elevated level of preservation and desirability. These GCC stickers are a mark of superior quality that should instill confidence among buyers and sellers. Collectors know that a note bearing a GCC green or gold sticker has been vetted by the most experienced and top experts, marking it to achieve premium value in the marketplace. In short, the green and gold stickers signal trust and excellence, making banknotes more attractive and liquid when it comes time to sell or trade.

GCC does not buy or sell collectibles. Its sole focus is guiding the collector with proper valuations, market insights, and connections to the most reputable resources in the industry. Acting as a liaison to the marketplace, its objective is to help navigate complex decisions with clarity and confidence.  

Finally, a woman has traditionally served as Treasurer of the United States. On May 5, 2025, for the first time since May 29, 1949, a man was sworn in to that post. Brandon Beach was previously a state senator in Georgia who chaired that body’s Committee on Economic Development and Tourism and had a role in disputing the results of the 2020 election in the state. As Treasurer, he will oversee the U.S. Mint, Bureau of Engraving and Printing, and the United States Bullion Depository at Fort Knox. His signature will be paired with that of Treasury secretary Scott Bessent on future series of United States currency.