DD 5: The Dubai Plate That Sold for AED 35 Million, the Billionaire Who Bought It, and the 13 Year Old Who Tried

On the evening of March 15, 2025, inside the Armani Hotel at the base of the Burj Khalifa, a bidding war broke out over five characters stamped on a metal plate. DD 5. Two letters, one digit. It started at AED 15 million and climbed fast. More than 20 bidders raised their paddles. Within minutes it became a two way contest between one of Dubai's most prominent real estate developers and a 13 year old boy sitting across the room.

The developer won. Muhammad Binghatti, Chairman of Binghatti Holding, the company behind the Bugatti Residences and the world's first Mercedes Benz branded city, paid AED 35 million for the plate. That is roughly $9.5 million. For context, that is more than a penthouse in the Palm Jumeirah, more than a LaFerrari, more than most people will earn in a lifetime. The 13 year old, Abdulkader Walid Asaad, did not walk away empty handed. He picked up plate DD 24 for AED 6.3 million. The auction hosts called him "the cub."

By the time the gavel fell on the last lot that evening, the Most Noble Number charity auction had raised AED 83.6 million. Five vehicle plates alone accounted for AED 75.9 million. Twenty luxury mobile numbers brought in another AED 7.7 million. Every dirham went to the Fathers' Endowment campaign, an initiative launched by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum to fund healthcare for underserved communities.

This is the story of that auction, the plate at its centre, the man who bought it, the boy who almost did, and what DD 5 tells us about how Dubai's number plate market actually works in 2025 and beyond.

If you have been around Dubai long enough, you know the single letter codes. A, B, C, D through to Z. These are the original series that the Roads and Transport Authority issued over the decades. A code plates are the oldest and most valuable because they represent the very first registrations in the modern system. As each single letter code filled up with five digit numbers, RTA moved on to the next.

Eventually, 26 letters were not enough. Dubai kept growing. More cars registered every year. So RTA introduced double letter codes. AA, BB, CC, and eventually DD. These double letter codes accommodate the overflow. They are the same white private vehicle plates, the same format, the same legal standing. The only difference is structural: double letters were issued later, so they have a shorter history behind them.

You might think a newer code means less prestige. In practice, the opposite has happened for select DD plates. Because the DD series is still relatively fresh, the single digit numbers within it (DD 1 through DD 9) have barely entered circulation. When one comes up at auction, it becomes an event. DD 5 was one of those events.

For a complete breakdown of every single and double letter code in the Dubai system, how they were introduced, and what each one is worth on the secondary market, see our full guide: Dubai Plate Codes A to Z: What Every Letter Means and What It's Worth.

DD 5: AED 35,000,000 (Muhammad Binghatti)

DD 12: AED 12,800,000

DD 15: AED 9,200,000 (Muhammad Binghatti)

DD 24: AED 6,300,000 (Abdulkader Walid Asaad)

DD 77: AED 12,600,000

Total from 5 vehicle plates: AED 75,900,000

There is a story that gets repeated often in Dubai business circles. When Binghatti Holding was in its earliest days, Muhammad Binghatti sold his personal car to make payroll. He needed to pay his team and the car was what he had. That was around 2014, when he took over the family property development company that his father, Dr. Hussain Binghatti Aljbori, had founded in 2008.

A decade later, Binghatti Holding reported AED 3.58 billion in net profit for financial year 2025. Revenue nearly doubled to AED 12.43 billion. The company's portfolio exceeds AED 70 billion in total investment value. Muhammad himself was ranked 8th on Forbes' list of the Middle East's Most Impactful Real Estate Leaders in 2025, and his father was ranked 17th on Forbes' World's Richest Arabs with a reported net worth of $2.5 billion. The family business placed 19th on Forbes' Top 100 Arab Family Businesses.

So when Muhammad Binghatti's representatives sat down at table number 4 in the Armani Hotel and raised bid paddle number 7 to secure DD 5 for AED 35 million, it was not a spontaneous moment of auction fever. It was a calculated brand move from a man who treats everything, from tower facades to licence plates, as part of a unified identity.

To understand why Binghatti spent AED 44.2 million in a single evening on two plates (DD 5 and DD 15), you have to understand how the company thinks about branding. Binghatti does not build residential towers. They build what they call "hyper properties," structures designed to be recognised instantly on a skyline the way you would recognise a Bugatti on a highway.

The partnerships tell the story. In November 2022, Binghatti announced the Burj Binghatti Jacob & Co Residences, a tower co designed with the luxury watchmaker and jeweller. In May 2023, they launched Bugatti Residences in Business Bay, where a penthouse recently sold for AED 550 million, the highest ever recorded for that submarket. In January 2024, Mercedes Benz Places was announced. By December 2025, the two parties announced a second collaboration: Mercedes Benz Places | Binghatti City, unveiled in January 2026 at an event in Meydan that drew more than 21,000 guests and featured a live performance by Andrea Bocelli.

A man who partners with Bugatti and Mercedes Benz to brand buildings is not going to drive around Dubai with a random five digit plate. DD 5 is a statement consistent with everything else Binghatti has built. The plate cost AED 35 million. The penthouse in his own Bugatti Residences sold for AED 550 million. At that scale, the plate is a rounding error on the brand budget.

For those interested in how licence plates pair with supercars and luxury lifestyle in the UAE, we explored this in detail: 2026 Hypercar Buyer's Guide for the UAE: What to Buy, What to Collect, and What Plate to Put on It.

Every great auction story needs an underdog. At the Most Noble Number event, that role belonged to Abdulkader Walid Asaad, a 13 year old schoolboy who was reportedly bidding on behalf of his father. The auction hosts did not quite know what to make of him at first. When DD 5 went live and the base price hit AED 15 million, Abdulkader was in the thick of it. He raised his paddle alongside seasoned collectors and billionaire businessmen.

The back and forth between Binghatti's team and the teenager drew the room's attention. It was a scene that felt scripted for social media but was completely real. International outlets picked it up within hours. DMARGE ran a headline: "Dubai Teen Joins Millionaire Bidding War for World's Most Expensive Number Plates." Supercar Blondie covered it. Khaleej Times, Gulf News, The National, and TikTok creators pushed it viral.

Abdulkader did not beat Binghatti on DD 5. But he stayed. When DD 24 came up, he secured it for AED 6.3 million. The hosts called him "the cub" and the audience responded warmly. A 13 year old spending AED 6.3 million on a plate is, depending on your perspective, either a glimpse of generational wealth in the Gulf or proof that the plate market in Dubai transcends age, nationality, and conventional logic.

The moment mattered because it illustrated something important about the UAE plate market. This is not a hobby for a narrow demographic. Collectors range from Emirati families preserving heritage to expat entrepreneurs signalling business success to teenagers inheriting a culture that treats plates as legitimate assets. If you are new to the concept of expats participating in this market, see Can Expats Buy Number Plates in UAE? Complete Eligibility and Buying Guide.

The Most Noble Number is not a regular RTA auction. Regular RTA auctions happen multiple times a year, they are open to anyone with a Dubai traffic file and a AED 25,000 deposit cheque, and they typically feature 90 to 350 plates across various code categories. Those auctions are serious business. The April 2025 RTA auction set an all time record of AED 98.83 million in total sales, nearly six times the combined starting prices.

The Most Noble Number operates on a different plane. It is a private, invitation style charity auction held during Ramadan, organised by the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives (MBRGI) in collaboration with Emirates Auction, with support from RTA, e& UAE, and du. It takes place at venues like the Armani Hotel in Burj Khalifa. The room is intimate. Big screens display the lots. Collectors and business leaders sit at assigned tables. The atmosphere is quiet except for the bidding, which is done through quick gestures and paddle raises. Multiple outlets have described it as theatre.

The March 2025 edition featured 25 lots in total: 5 vehicle plate numbers from RTA (all under the DD code), 10 du mobile numbers, and 10 e& UAE mobile numbers. That is it. Five plates. The scarcity is the entire point.

Every dirham raised at the Most Noble Number goes to charity. The 2025 proceeds supported the Fathers' Endowment campaign, launched by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum during Ramadan to honour fathers across the UAE. The fund establishes a sustainable endowment to provide medical treatment and healthcare for underserved communities. Previous editions funded the 100 Million Meals campaign and the 1 Billion Meals Endowment.

This charity component matters. It transforms the transaction from pure vanity into something more layered. The buyers know the money goes to healthcare and food security. The public sees the spectacle but also the cause. Binghatti's AED 44.2 million in bids became the single largest contribution to the Fathers' Endowment that night, representing more than half of the entire auction's revenue.

du 0584444444: AED 1,700,000

e& UAE 0565000000: AED 1,600,000

0500777777: AED 900,000

0500999999: AED 740,000

du 0584444448: AED 250,000

AED 35 million is an extraordinary amount. But in the context of Dubai's record book, DD 5 sits in the middle of the top tier. Here is where it falls historically:

DD 5 ties with AA 8 at the number 5 position. The plate that ranks directly above it, AA 9, sold for AED 38 million in 2021. We covered that sale in detail: AA 9: The Dubai License Plate That Sold for AED 38 Million. The BB 12 sale at AED 9.66 million set a record for RTA's regular open auction format: Dubai Number Plate "BB 12" Sells for AED 9.66 Million at Auction, Setting a New Record.

Something worth noting: the top five most expensive plates ever sold in Dubai or Abu Dhabi were all single digit numbers. P 7, Abu Dhabi 1, F 1, AA 9, DD 5, AA 8. The market has made its verdict clear. Single digits are the pinnacle. For a deeper dive into the full history and what these prices tell us about the future, see Most Expensive Number Plates Ever Sold in Dubai and UAE History.

There are exactly nine single digit plates in any given code series (1 through 9). In the DD code, that means DD 1 through DD 9 are the only single digit options that will ever exist. That is nine plates for a city where over 80,000 millionaires live, where supercars are more common than public buses in some neighbourhoods, and where the wealthiest residents treat number plates as a core element of personal identity.

Nine plates. One city. Infinite demand from people who can afford it.

The number 5 carries specific weight in the UAE context. There are five pillars of Islam. It is a number associated with balance, faith, and completeness across Middle Eastern cultures. Unlike the number 7 (which is universally considered lucky) or the number 8 (which carries enormous weight in Chinese buyer circles), 5 has a quieter but deeply rooted significance. For a buyer like Binghatti who has spent his career weaving Emirati identity into international luxury brands, the symbolism would not be accidental.

A fair question: if DD is a newer code, why did DD 5 command the same price as AA 8, which uses one of the most prestigious double letter codes in Dubai?

Part of the answer is context. AA 8 sold in 2022 in a strong but less heated market. DD 5 sold in 2025 in the middle of a sustained luxury boom, with Binghatti as a motivated and well funded bidder. But the bigger answer is that single digit numbers partially override code hierarchy. Once you are in the single digit category, the digit itself matters more than the code prefix. A single digit plate from any code is rarer and more visually striking than a double or triple digit from a premium code.

That said, if a hypothetical A 5 or AA 5 came to market, it would almost certainly command more than DD 5. Code seniority still matters. It is just not the only factor at the single digit level. For the full pricing dynamics across every code letter, see our complete analysis: VIP Number Plate Price Dubai 2026: Realistic Ranges for 1, 2, and 3 Digit Plates.

Most Noble Number plates consistently sell above what you would expect on the open market. Why? Because the charity element adds a layer of social value. When Binghatti pays AED 35 million at a Most Noble Number auction, the headlines read differently than if he had paid AED 35 million in a private deal. The charity auction gives the purchase a philanthropic dimension. The buyer is seen as generous, community minded, and status conscious all at once. That is worth a premium.

Compare this to RTA auctions versus private sales versus marketplace platforms, where prices follow pure market dynamics without the charity overlay.

Reporting from Gulf News, Khaleej Times, The National, and Lovin Dubai gives us a detailed picture of the evening. Here is how it unfolded:

The Armani Hotel sits in the lower floors of the Burj Khalifa. The auction room was arranged with numbered tables, each assigned to registered bidders or their representatives. Big screens displayed the lots as they came up. Auction hosts from Emirates Auction managed the room, calling out bids and adding colour commentary. Muhammad Binghatti's core team members were at table 4. They had bid paddle number 7.

The first and marquee lot of the evening. Starting price: AED 15 million. Bidding opened and immediately drew interest from across the room. More than 20 participants placed bids in the early rounds. As the price climbed past AED 20 million, the field narrowed. Past AED 25 million, it became a focused contest. Past AED 30 million, it was effectively a two way race between Binghatti's team and young Abdulkader across the room.

When the final bid landed at AED 35 million, the host confirmed it to table 4 and announced: "This is the legend, this is the man." The room acknowledged the win. Binghatti's team had secured the evening's centrepiece.

DD 12 came next and sold for AED 12.8 million. DD 77 drew particular interest at AED 12.6 million, the repeating 7s carrying cultural weight. DD 15 went to Binghatti again at AED 9.2 million, bringing his total to AED 44.2 million, more than half of the entire auction. DD 24 closed the vehicle plate segment, with "the cub" Abdulkader claiming it for AED 6.3 million.

The mobile number phase followed. The top performer was du number 0584444444, which sold for AED 1.7 million. The repeating 4s are significant: four is associated with stability in Arabic numerology, and the visual uniformity of seven consecutive 4s is irresistible to collectors. e& UAE's 0565000000 fetched AED 1.6 million.

If you are reading this and wondering whether DD code plates represent an investment opportunity, let us look at the numbers objectively.

The DD series is still early in its lifecycle. Most DD numbers with five digits are standard issue plates worth very little. But the low digit DD plates (single digit, double digit, and triple repeating patterns) are establishing their value for the first time. When DD 5 sold for AED 35 million and DD 77 sold for AED 12.6 million in the same evening, it set a benchmark. Future DD plates of similar quality will be measured against these prices.

There is also the supply argument. RTA has not yet released all DD single digit plates to market. DD 1, DD 2, DD 3, DD 4, DD 6, DD 7, DD 8, and DD 9 are all plates that either have not been auctioned publicly or were sold privately. When (not if) they come to auction, DD 5 at AED 35 million becomes the comparable. Some of those remaining digits could exceed it, especially DD 7 (the seven emirates connection) or DD 1 (the universal premium on the number 1).

DD is a newer code. It lacks the heritage of A, B, or even AA. An A 5, if it ever became available, would likely trade at multiples of what DD 5 fetched. The code prefix still acts as a ceiling on value for many traditional collectors.

There is also the charity premium problem. DD 5 sold at a Most Noble Number auction where emotional bidding, peer pressure, and philanthropic signalling inflate prices beyond what the same plate might fetch in a cold private transaction. If Binghatti tried to sell DD 5 tomorrow in a private deal, the price would likely be lower, perhaps significantly.

For a full framework on how to evaluate plates as financial assets, see our complete guide: UAE Number Plates as Investment: Returns, Risks, and How to Build a Plate Portfolio.

DD 5 (March 2025): AED 35,000,000 (Most Noble Number charity auction)

AA 8 (Spring 2022): AED 35,000,000 (Most Noble Number charity auction)

AA 9 (May 2021): AED 38,000,000 (Most Noble Number charity auction)

BB 12 (January 2025): AED 9,660,000 (regular RTA open auction)

BB 777 (September 2025): AED 6,000,000 (regular RTA open auction)

Note: Charity auction prices typically run 20% to 40% above equivalent private market values. Factor this into any valuation model.

RTA holds open auctions multiple times per year, often at the Grand Hyatt Dubai or similar venues. To participate:

You need a Dubai traffic file (any resident with a registered vehicle has one). You register through the RTA website, the Dubai Drive app, or in person at Customer Happiness Centres in Umm Ramool, Deira, or Al Barsha. You submit a security deposit cheque of AED 25,000 payable to RTA. All sales are subject to 5% VAT. Payment must be completed within 10 working days of winning. Cash is accepted up to AED 50,000; anything above requires certified cheques or credit card payment.

For a step by step walkthrough of the entire buying process, see How to Buy a Number Plate in Dubai: RTA Guide 2026.

These are more exclusive. They happen once per year during Ramadan. Participation requires registration through MBRGI and Emirates Auction. The bidder pool is smaller, the lots are fewer, and the starting prices are higher. If you are interested in attending, monitor the Emirates Auction website and app in the weeks leading up to Ramadan. Registration typically opens several weeks before the event.

You do not have to attend an auction to buy a plate. The secondary market is large, liquid for premium plates, and operates through platforms like LicensePlate.ae, as well as RTA approved dealers and classified listings. For high value plates, expect to negotiate directly with the seller or their broker.

Before purchasing any plate privately, run a full verification check. We built a complete due diligence framework: How to Verify a UAE Number Plate Before You Buy: The Complete Due Diligence Checklist. And to understand common fraud patterns in the secondary market, see How to Avoid Number Plate Scams in UAE: Safety Guide 2026.

DD 5's sale did not happen in isolation. The year 2025 was the biggest year in the history of UAE plate auctions. The March Most Noble Number raised AED 83.6 million. But the RTA's own open auctions pushed even further.

The 118th RTA open auction in April 2025 set an all time record of AED 98.83 million in total sales from 90 plates. The combined starting prices for those 90 plates was just AED 16.5 million. The bidders pushed the total to nearly six times that amount. This tells you everything about the state of the market: demand is outpacing supply by a factor that keeps widening.

For context on how these auction dynamics compare to buying and selling on the open market, see our comparison: RTA Plate Auction vs Private Sale vs Marketplace: Where You Actually Get the Best Deal.

Before 2025, double letter codes (AA, BB, CC, DD) were considered a step below the original single letter series in terms of prestige. They still are, technically. But the March auction proved that a double letter plate with the right digit can trade at levels previously reserved for the elite single letter codes. DD 5 at AED 35 million matched AA 8 at AED 35 million. The digit overrode the code.

This has implications for anyone holding or considering double letter plates with low digits or strong patterns. If you own a BB, CC, or DD plate with a desirable number, the ceiling on your plate's value just moved up.

When a known public figure buys a plate, it creates a narrative that amplifies value across the entire category. Ronaldo's CR 7 plate (which we covered in Ronaldo's CR 7 Dubai Plate: Why It's One of the Rarest Number Plates) did this for the concept of plate personalization. P 7 being spotted on a Tesla Model X did this for the absurdity factor. DD 5 going to Binghatti does something different: it legitimises plates as a corporate brand tool.

If one of the most successful developers in the Middle East treats a AED 35 million plate as part of his brand strategy, it sends a signal to every other business leader in the UAE. Plates are not just personal vanity. They are business assets. They are brand identifiers. They belong in the same conversation as naming rights, sponsorships, and trademark portfolios.

Abdulkader's AED 6.3 million purchase at age 13 is a data point, not an anomaly. Younger generations in the Gulf are inheriting both the wealth and the cultural significance of plate collecting. As wealth transfers accelerate over the next decade, the buyer pool will expand, and the newer code series (DD, EE, FF, and beyond) will be the ones this generation grows up with. They may not have the nostalgia for A code or B code plates. DD might be their equivalent of what A was to their parents.

Not everyone owns a single digit DD plate worth tens of millions. But the same market forces that drive DD 5 to AED 35 million also influence the value of your AED 5,000 or AED 50,000 plate. Here is how to approach valuation and sale.

Start with our Plate Value Calculator to get an instant estimate based on code, digit count, and pattern. For a manual valuation, the key factors are: digit count (fewer digits = more valuable), pattern quality (repeating numbers, sequences, culturally significant numbers), code letter seniority (A through Z, then AA through ZZ), and current market conditions.

You can list your plate on LicensePlate.ae to reach serious buyers directly. For a full walkthrough of the selling process, including RTA transfer requirements and how to avoid getting scammed, see How to Sell a Dubai Number Plate in 2026. The transfer process itself is straightforward: both parties visit RTA, pay the transfer fee (approximately AED 500), and complete the ownership change. For detailed transfer instructions, see How to Transfer a Number Plate in Dubai: Complete 2026 Guide.

DD 5 sold for AED 35 million ($9.5 million) at the Most Noble Number charity auction on March 15, 2025, held at the Armani Hotel in Burj Khalifa, Dubai.

Muhammad Binghatti, Chairman of Binghatti Holding, the company behind Bugatti Residences, Mercedes Benz Places, and Burj Binghatti Jacob & Co Residences. He also purchased DD 15 at the same auction for AED 9.2 million.

Abdulkader Walid Asaad, a 13 year old schoolboy reportedly bidding on behalf of his father. He competed for DD 5 but ultimately won plate DD 24 for AED 6.3 million.

DD is a double letter code issued by Dubai's RTA after the single letter codes (A through Z) were exhausted. It functions identically to single letter codes but was introduced later to accommodate growth in vehicle registrations.

AED 83.6 million. Five vehicle plates raised AED 75.9 million and 20 luxury mobile numbers raised AED 7.7 million. All proceeds went to the Fathers' Endowment campaign for healthcare funding.

No. The most expensive plate sold in Dubai is P 7 at AED 55 million (April 2023). DD 5 ties with AA 8 at AED 35 million for the fifth highest sale. Abu Dhabi's plate number 1 sold for AED 52.2 million in 2008.

The Most Noble Number is an invitation style charity auction held during Ramadan, organised by MBRGI and Emirates Auction. Registration opens in the weeks before the event through the Emirates Auction website and app. Standard RTA auctions are open to any Dubai traffic file holder.

DD single digit and premium pattern plates have established strong value benchmarks (DD 5 at AED 35M, DD 77 at AED 12.6M). However, charity auction prices include a philanthropic premium and should not be taken as direct market values. DD remains a newer code with less heritage than A, B, or AA series plates.

As of the time of writing, there has been no confirmed public sighting or report of which vehicle Binghatti has placed the DD 5 plate on.

At the same March 2025 auction, Binghatti also purchased DD 15 for AED 9.2 million. His combined spend at the event was AED 44.2 million, representing more than half of the auction's total revenue.

You can buy and sell plates through LicensePlate.ae, through RTA auctions (online or in person), or through RTA approved dealers and brokers.

Both buyer and seller visit an RTA service centre with valid Emirates IDs, pay the transfer fee (approximately AED 500), and complete the ownership change. See our full guide: How to Transfer a Number Plate in Dubai.

DD 5 is a plate. Five characters on a piece of metal. But what happened on the evening of March 15, 2025, at the Armani Hotel tells you something real about Dubai in this era. A self made developer who once sold his car to make payroll now spends AED 44.2 million in a single evening on two plates and a teenager across the room bids AED 6.3 million without flinching. The money goes to healthcare for people who will never know the names of the buyers. The plates go onto cars worth more than some buildings. And by morning, the whole thing is a headline, a TikTok clip, and a market benchmark all at once.

That is the plate market in the UAE. It is part culture, part finance, part philanthropy, part theatre. DD 5 is just the latest chapter in a story that has been building since Saeed Al Khouri paid AED 52.2 million for Abu Dhabi's number 1 in 2008. The numbers get bigger. The buyers get more prominent. The codes get newer. But the underlying dynamic never changes: in a place where wealth is abundant and supply is permanently fixed, a single digit on a plate will always be priceless.

Browse available Dubai plates on LicensePlate.ae or use our Plate Value Calculator to see what your plate is worth today.