US Mutilated Coin Programme Abolished

Earlier this year, the US Mint published a proposal to abolish its Mutilated Coin Redemption Program, relating to the face value exchange of bent, partial and fused coins (see CN May 2024).

According to the Mint, not only does the program operate at a loss, but it is too cumbersome to manage because the sheer volume of coins submitted for replacement. Previous submissions have included numerous counterfeit US coins, resulting in lawsuits and an indefinite suspension of the programme.

As part of the announcement in the Federal Register, the Mint sought public comment on the proposal, noting that the number of organisations affected by the cessation of the program were likely to be small.

The US government established the program in 1911 to enable the redemption of small amounts of damaged coin and for 100 years it rolled along, with most coins submitted in small quantities from private citizens. In recent years, however, it has been overwhelmed by large submissions from commercial entities, including recyclers from China who flooded the program with coins totalling millions of dollars in face value, including counterfeits.