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Five and ten cent coins to disappear ‘within a decade’ as Australian Mint says demand is dropping due to online shopping and contactless payments
- Australian Mint predicts disappearance of five and ten cent coins in a decade
- A rise in contactless payments has caused a plummet in demand for cash
- The coins have been around since 1966, reaching peak production in 2006
Five and ten cent coins could disappear within a decade due to low demand, the Royal Australian Mint has predicted.
Silver five and 10 cent coins were introduced in Australia in 1966, and 463million of them were minted in 2006.
However, a lack of demand meant only 27million were made in 2018.
The Royal Australian Mint has blamed the expected demise of the coins on the popularity of online shopping and contactless card payments.
The five cent coin (pictured) is predicted to be the first to go as demand for cash plummets
Royal Australian Mint chief executive Ross MacDiarmid (pictured) is predicting five and ten cent coins could disappear in a decade
After 50 years of production it’s believed time could be up for the silver coins, suffering the same fate of one and two cent coins in the 1990s.
Over the past five years demand for coinage has dropped by about 55 per cent, mostly for silver coins.
Royal Australian Mint chief executive Ross MacDiarmid said he expects the 5 cent coin to be out of circulation in ‘the next five to 10 years’.
‘Retailers more than likely would be the ones that would stimulate a decline in the demand for 5c pieces because if you rounded up to 10 there’s not really much need for a five,’ he told the ABC.
However rather than demonetising the currency, it’s likely shops would continue to accept the coins or they could be exchanged at banks.
Meanwhile the bulky 12-sided 50 cent coin could be the next on the chopping block.
Mr MacDiarmid said the Mint was looking at the demand for 50 cent coins to figure out if there may be support to change its current format.
‘It’s not something we’ve necessarily raised with the Government but it’s something that perhaps could be raised in the future,’ he said.
As talks continue on the production of the currency billions of coins are in limbo – either lost in the back of couches or taken overseas with tourists.
There are currently four billion coins in circulation in Australia.
The Australian Mint says it’s monitoring circulation of the 50 cent coin (pictured) as a very early stage of considering changing its production
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