SIt was widely reported that November's taxi medallion auction was a roaring success with 200 wheelchair accessible only taxi meduallions auctioned off at a record breaking "up to" $2,500,000 for a pair. No details were given by the media. Not each and every medallion went for $1,250,000. Two did.
To understand this post you should know that corporate or minifleet medallions used to be bought by ordinary taxi drivers. Often two or more drivers would partner in a minifleet and drive the attached taxis themselves. Sometimes they would lease to night drivers and work eight or nine hours a day living fairly conventional lives. We are talking about a bygone era. Old timers who got in early are "the last of the Mohegans."
Next month there is scheduled an auction of 200 owner driver medallions. As far as I know there will be no way for the big dogs to come in on it.
So let's look at the November auction in depth. :
12 players got the medapllions. One was a woman, pRita Ryan who successfully bid for one minifleet consisting of two medallions.
The highest winning bid was $2,518,000. The lowest winning bid was $2,050,000. The average winning bid was $2,267,390.12. Upset price set at1,750,000. These prices are for two paired medallions known as minifleets.
Richard Chipman got 7 minifleets or 14 medallions.
Gennady Nadelman got 20 minifleets.
Evgeny Friedman got 10 minifleets..
Boris Basin got 6 minifleets.
Mahmed Dzhaniyv got 6 minifleets.
Maxim Katz got 4 minifleets.
Yuri Treskov got 20 minifleets.
Simon Garber got 10 minifleets.
Rita Ryan got one minifleet.
Savas Tsitiridis got 6 minifleets.
Roland Uzi got one minifleet.
John Giovanis got 9 minifleeys
And there are 10 minifleets in reserve.
And so dear public that last auction was not evidence that taxi drivers or the general public believe that the medallion is a solid investment. Maybe, just maybe with Mike Bloomberg and well financed sociopath (IMHO) Travis Kalanick out to destroy these dozen people and with most drivers quite unsentimental about yellow taxis the November suction might represent good money chasing after bad money. The February auction is where the public and the drivers will speak.
A Uberdriver is a taxi drivrr with a tie.
