Australia's coin production is facing increasing scrutiny due to its cost and inconvenience. Armaguard CEO Matt Caulfield highlights the hefty cost and logistical challenges associated with handling coins, particularly the 5¢ piece which surpasses its face value in production cost. The Royal Australian Mint acknowledges the impact of metal prices on production costs, revealing the 5¢ coin's significant expense. While banknotes remain a preferred mode of transaction, the debate on the future of Australian coins continues.
Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time. Armaguard chief executive Matt Caulfield, whose company is responsible for the safe storage and transport of about 90 per cent of the country’s cash, wouldn’t mind if he never saw a coin again. “Coins are very heavy relative to their value,” he says. “Our operations, including storing and processing coins, are complex, cumbersome and expensive to operate.” It’s the 5¢ piece that costs the country the most.
In September 2022, Royal Australian Mint chief executive Leigh Gordon revealed it cost more than 12¢ to make each 5¢ coin. In 2022-23, the Mint made more than 110 million Australian coins. In 2023-24, it made about 47 million.And despite only 18,700 5¢ pieces being purchased from the Mint in 2023-24, it made 10 million more 5¢ coins this year – with the image of King Charles III. Except for coins locked up in shops and ATMs, or those down the sides of couches and underneath beds, Australia’s cash sits mostly in Armaguard’s secure facilities and armoured vehicles. “We’re like Uber for cash,” Caulfield says. But he would much rather have banknotes for passengers than coins.While $1 million in banknotes could fit snugly in a briefcase, the same amount in $2 coins would require the space of several bathtubs.“50¢ pieces are the heaviest and most cumbersome, and their shape is unique,” he says, which makes carting them around the nation an expensive and heavy task.While the Mint declined to reveal more recent cost-of-production data, chief financial officer Amanda Benn says it is largely based on metal prices. “The majority of the cost fits within the metal component,” she says, with some additional costs for workers and overheads, including machine maintenance.The $1 and $2 coins, made up of 92 per cent copper, generally cost less to produce than 5¢, 10¢ and 20¢ coins, which are 75 per cent copper and 25 per cent nicke
COINS PRODUCTION COSTS AUSTRALIA ARMAGUARD ROYAL AUSTRALIAN MINT BANKNOTES
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