A history of the coin

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A history of the coin

00:00 Speaker A

The US Treasury Department is officially phasing out the penny. The Treasury made its final order of penny blanks and will cease production once those blanks have been used. Back in February, President Trump announced his intentions to remove the penny from circulation, writing, “This is so wasteful,” on Truth Social. Americans can still use any pennies that they already have in their possession, but according to the Treasury spokesperson, demand for the coins is shrinking and there are already 114 billion in circulation. The number of new pennies has been on the decline for the past several years, with 3.2 billion new pennies produced in 2024. Businesses will soon need to adjust prices to the nearest 5 cents as fewer pennies become available. According to a US Treasury spokesperson, the move is expected to save at least $56 million per year, with more savings to come. It costs just under 4 cents to produce each penny, to the tune of $85 million in losses for the government last year. And according to waste management company Reworld, Americans throw away $68 million in coins each year. The penny dates back to the founding of the US Mint in 1792. It was originally made of pure copper, but was mixed with nickel starting in 1857. President Abraham Lincoln’s profile became the first real person to be featured on a US coin starting in 1909. And now, the coin’s tenure is coming to an end after over 230 years.

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