In 2022, the US Mint continued to manufacture coins at near record levels, producing nearly 14 billion in the year.

The Royal Canadian Mint (RCM) produces coins for Canada, exports over 1 billion coins each year and provides technical support and materials to other mints. Sustainability (in its broadest sense) is a key part of the Mint’s operations and philosophy and it has recently issued its 2023 Environment Social and Governance (ESG) report.

Marie Lemay joined the Royal Canadian Mint as its CEO in 2019. With nearly four years now under her belt, half of which were during COVID, Coin & Mint News spoke to her about how coins are circulated in Canada, design and the importance of numismatics, sustainability and plans for the next Mint Directors Conference, which the RCM is hosting this October in Ottawa.

The Croatian National Bank and Croatian Mint have jointly issued two new numismatic euro pieces – the first of their type since the country officially adopted the euro as its currency on 1 January 2023.

The Turkish State Mint has reduced the size of the lira coins to offset rising minting costs, according to local reports.

At the start of January, Latvia’s central bank, Latvijas Banka, relocated the Cashier’s Offices to the same site as its cash processing centre and, at the same time, improved the coin change service that it offers.

For the 17th year in a row, the cost of producing the US penny and nickel has exceeded their face value, and is now running at an all time high, according to the United States Mint’s latest annual report.

The lowest denomination coins – cents, pennies, whatever – are a headache, for issuers and, increasingly the public. The rising costs of production increasingly mean that the face value of the coins are outstripped by their production costs – resulting in negative seigniorage. On this basis, why do countries keep on minting and issuing them?

Nominations are now open for the MDC’s prestigious Coin Awards. Last held in 2018, the awards recognise industry achievements in the design, production and packaging of coins, as well as, for the first time, sustainability in minting.

Whilst some central banks are turning to technology to solve issues with coin distribution, the option of using coin-operated machines is steadily being replaced in many areas by those offering cashless payment options only. These options may be more convenient, but they can come at the expense of those who rely on traditional cash-accepting machines.

Sustainability remains a topic of interest for the cash industry, both coins and banknotes. Government mints were early adopters of sustainability and have offered for many years programs where the public or businesses could redeem damaged or mutilated coins.

Hosted by the Royal Canadian Mint and scheduled to take place 15-18 October in Ottawa, the Mint Directors Conference has announced that the keynote speaker will be economist and former Governor of the Bank of Canada, Stephen Poloz.

At the upcoming Currency Conference, a workshop will be held on 15 May dedicated to coins, focusing on their intrinsic, essential and yet often overlooked role in the cash cycle, examining their importance for payments, the challenges they face, and how they can be made more cost-effective and accessible.

The International Currency Association (ICA), representing the global currency sector, has published a Cash Policy White Paper. It wants policy makers to recognise that the benefits of cash to society may be lost without practical steps to protect the supply and acceptance of cash in society and promote its further development.

The US Mint has commenced its 2023 American Women Quarters (AWQ) programme with the release of the first two coins in this year’s series.

In last month’s issue of Coin & Mint News, we covered five of the presentations made in the first session of the World Money Fair Technical Forum 2023. This month, we cover the five presentations made in the second session, which focused on PVD coating and toolmaking.

The Central Bank of Curaçao and St Maarten has said it expects that the introduction of the new Caribbean guilder will be completed in the second half of 2024.

Under section 104 of the US Presidential $1 Coin Act of 2005 (Public Law 109-145), the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System is required to submit an annual report to Congress on the Presidential $1 Coin Program.

At the Coin Conference last October in Amsterdam, Alejandro Alegre Rabiela, General Director of Currency Issuance and Chief Cashier of Banco de México, described the proposals being made to improve Mexico’s coin circulation.

With the awards ceremony scheduled to take place at the Currency Conference in Mexico City (15-16 May), the finalists for the 2023 Excellence in Currency Awards have now been announced.