The fourth edition of the Directory of Circulating Coins has now been published.
In the last five years, and since the last edition was published in 2019, 69 countries or monetary unions have changed their circulating coinage in some shape or form, out of a total 184 issuers. Some 20 of these have issued new series, with 17 countries discontinuing 40 coins so far, and 20 making design changes to 48 coins, whilst 10 countries have made material changes to 21 coins.
The Directory also provides details of the 321 updated coins – both those that have already occurred, including the introduction of new coins and discontinuation of those already in circulation, and those that are planned and have not yet entered or exited circulation – of which there are 98 coins.
This includes those planning to update their coin obverse with a new monarch, such as King Charles III or King Frederik X. In the case of the former, four countries are progressively releasing updated coins featuring King Charles III, with a further four announcing the updates but yet to begin issuance, and at least two have announced that they plan to replacement the monarch’s effigy with another design.
Some 21 countries are planning to change at least one element of their circulation coinage in the near future. Another common proposed change, in addition to the above, is the introduction of coin rounding next year, notably in Estonia, the Falkland Islands, and Lithuania.
A further five countries and monetary unions have introduced new currencies, with Curaçao and Sint Maarten and Bulgaria set to change to the Caribbean guilder and euro, respectively, in the next couple of years.
With nearly 200 pages, the Directory is the only guide to every current circulating coin in the world, providing up-to-date information, specification and images on every coin in one concise and easy-to-use volume. It provides an invaluable reference and research tool for anyone involved in the design, production, issue and management of coins.
Copies of the Directory will be supplied free of charge to central banks and treasury departments worldwide, with discounts available for Coin & Mint News™ subscribers.
