Mint conspiracy

The Euro Zone reported a population of 338.977 million, which is slightly larger than the USA.

Billions of Coins produced in Euro Zone 2002-2015
29.40 one cent
22.86 two cents
17.91 five cents
13.16 ten cents
10.07 twenty cents
5.58 fifty cents
6.66 one Euro
5.29 two Euros
110.92 billion total coins production 14 years in Euro Zone

There were 91.5 billion pennies minted in USA during same 14 years. The US minted over 300 billion Copper-plated Zinc pennies since 1983. That is roughly 1000 pennies per capita.

There are four active coin-producing mints: Philadelphia, Denver, San Francisco, and West Point.

The Mint's largest facility is the Philadelphia Mint. The current facility at Philadelphia, which opened in 1969, is the fourth Philadelphia Mint.

The Denver branch began life in 1863 as the local assay office, just five years after gold was discovered in the area. By the turn of the century, the office was bringing in over $5 million in annual gold and silver deposits, and in 1906, the Mint opened its new Denver branch.

The San Francisco branch, since 1975, it has been used solely for proof coinage, with the exception of the Anthony dollar and a portion of the mintage of cents in the early 1980s. (These cents are indistinguishable from those minted at Philadelphia.)

The West Point branch is the newest mint facility, gaining official status as a branch mint in 1988 andis now the United States' production facility for gold, silver and platinum American Eagle coins.

Basically with 300 billion pennies produced since 1983 and 58 billion nickels produced since 1938, I think incentives should be created to pull these coins back into common circulation. It is ridiculous to keep two major mints open when over half the coins produced are pennies.

I haven't used pocket change for anything
in years. I never even get it anymore, I
use cards for everything. Who is using
all these coins. 90% of the people I see
in stores pay with plastic. In self check
out you often see most machines don't
even take cash.

Quote: Evenbob

I haven't used pocket change for anything
in years. I never even get it anymore, I
use cards for everything. Who is using
all these coins. 90% of the people I see
in stores pay with plastic. In self check
out you often see most machines don't
even take cash.

This is why I don't understand why you even have the penny anymore. What purpose does it serve other than to fill your wallet with tiny bits of metal that you have basically no use for? Australia eliminated the 1c & 2c coin maybe 20 years ago and the 5c coin will surely be next. Everything still gets charged to the 1c level with the final bill being rounded to the nearest 5c for cash payments only (electronic payments are still to the 1c level).


EDIT: 1c & 2c coins were withdrawn in 1991.

Some convenience stores don't accept small purchases on cards. Yeah, I usually buy gas there, so it's covered most of the time, but I have been on the road where I just wanted a cup of coffee or a pack of gum.

Close a mint? About as easily done as closing a factory or anything else that has a payroll in some Congressman's district. Doubt there is any relationship to coins.

Was this Mint Conspiracy related to the Saffron Revolution, or the Jet Blue Coup? :)

Quote: Aussie

This is why I don't understand why you even have the penny anymore. What purpose does it serve other than to fill your wallet with tiny bits of metal that you have basically no use for? Australia eliminated the 1c & 2c coin maybe 20 years ago and the 5c coin will surely be next. Everything still gets charged to the 1c level with the final bill being rounded to the nearest 5c for cash payments only (electronic payments are still to the 1c level).
EDIT: 1c & 2c coins were withdrawn in 1991.

Most of the smaller nations have withdrawn their small denomination coins when they are too impractical to keep minting. I mention the Euro Zone since they designed their coins and banknotes in the mid 1990's and chose not to eliminate the 1 and 2 cent coin.

The 1 and 2c Euro coins were initially introduced to ensure that the introduction of the euro was not used as an excuse by retailers to heavily round up prices. However, due to the cost of maintaining a circulation of low value coins, by business and the mints, Belgium, Finland, Ireland and the Netherlands round prices to the nearest five cents if paying with cash, while producing only a handful of those coins for collectors, rather than general circulation. The coins are still legal tender and produced outside these states. Despite this, many shops in the Netherlands refuse to accept them.

Still over 14 years 52.26 billion of the 1c and 2c coins were minted out of a total of 110.93 billion (see initial post) or 47% of the Euro Coins.

It remains to be seen if any countries will follow South Koreas lead and eliminate coins entirely.

I thought the push was the other way with more durable coins replacing paper denominations. I recall traveling to Britain decades ago, and getting paper 1 Pound notes from the bank before heading overseas. When I got there, I was advised to keep them because they were collector's items, having been replaced by coins a few years prior.

For years I threw pennies away in parking
lots. I didn't want them in my pocket.
They were always gone next time I went
to that store. I did it hundreds of times.

Quote: Ayecarumba

I thought the push was the other way with more durable coins replacing paper denominations. I recall traveling to Britain decades ago, and getting paper 1 Pound notes from the bank before heading overseas. When I got there, I was advised to keep them because they were collector's items, having been replaced by coins a few years prior.

I think the move to replace banknotes with durable coins as a cost saving measure has more or less come to an end. The drive is now to replace physical fiat currency with electronic currency. The Sacagawea dollar was the final straw.


1971 Eisenhower dollar
1979 Susan B. Anthony dollar
2000 Sacagawea dollar

1983 British one pound coin introduced
1994 British two-pound coin (to celebrate the 300th Anniversary of the Bank of England 1694-1994).

1987 Canadian one dollar coin, commonly called the loonie .
1996 Canadian two-dollar coin was in turn nicknamed the "toonie" .

1982 The Japanese 500 yen coin was first minted to replace the 500 yen note, which continued to be used alongside it until April 1, 1994.

1997 The Mexican 10 pesos note was withdrawn in favor of a coin

The Swiss 5 franc coin was first minted in 1850 in silver. In 1931, the size of the 5-franc coin was reduced from 25 grams to 15, with the silver content reduced from .900 to .835 fineness. By 1969 it was minted in Cupronickel. On 1 January 1968: 5 CHF ~ $1.16 and now is worth about $5.

Many of the pre-Euro currencies has smallest banknotes that were worth less than 5 Euros. When the Euro was introduced the 1 and 2 Euros was a coin, but the 5 Euro was a banknote.

value in euros	Smallest banknote of:
0.29	Greek drachma
0.32	Estonian kroon
0.42	Slovenian tolar
0.52	Italian lira
0.66	Slovak koruna
1.45	Austrian schilling
1.68	Finnish markka
1.71	Cypriot pound
2.27	Dutch guilder
2.48	Belgian franc
2.48	Luxembourgish franc
2.49	Portuguese escudo
2.90	Lithuanian litas
3.05	French franc
4.66	Maltese lira
5.11	Deutsche mark
6.01	Spanish peseta
6.35	Irish pound
7.11	Latvian lat