The Bank of Central African States (BEAC) has released a new family of circulating coins for member countries of the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (CEMAC). This includes Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of Congo.

The Bank of Zambia has begun issuing new families of both banknotes and coins. The currency showcases Zambia’s rich heritage, with its unique flora and fauna as the central theme; hence it is called the ‘Heritage Series’.

The Central Bank of Curaçao and Sint Maarten began issuing a new family of banknotes and coins on 31 March. This is not just a redesign and upgrade for the coins and notes but a completely new currency, with the Caribbean guilder replacing the Netherlands Antilles guilder.

Germany’s National Cash Forum is now advocating rounding to the nearest five euro cents for cash payments, asking the Federal Ministry of Finance to follow suit and ‘advocate for, and press ahead with, a binding statutory rounding rule in Germany’.

Debates surrounding low value coinage – their use, perceived usefulness, seigniorage, and so on – are hardly rare, particularly as countries such as the Bahamas, Estonia, Slovakia, and Lithuania have either previously or plan to introduce cash rounding, effectively dropping the lowest denominated coins regardless of them remaining legal tender.

According to the US Mint’s Annual Report for 2024, the production and associated costs for circulating coinage continues to rise year-on-year. Much of the increased production costs this year have been attributed to the cost of metal acquisition, although this is far from the first time that penny and nickel costs exceed their face value.

Danmarks Nationalbank has announced the signing of a new agreement with Fábrica Nacional de Moneda y Timbre – Real Casa de La Moneda (FNMT-RCM, or the Spanish Mint) regarding production of Danish coins for the next four years.

According to production figures from the US Mint as of the end of October, just under 4.62 billion coins have been manufactured this year. Annual mintage for 2024 is estimated to reach 5.5 billion coins – a 56.5% decline compared to the same period in 2023.

The history of Pakistan, as reflected through its coinage, offers a fascinating narrative of the country’s development and it’s shifting political and cultural landscape.

The Royal Canadian Mint has produced a $2 commemorative circulation coin to celebrate Inuit Nunangat, the Inuit homeland, a vast area that encompasses land, water, and ice and a source from which Inuit draw unity, strength, resilience, and identity.