The U.S. Coin Task Force has released a new paper on the state of the coin supply chain in the U.S. and the causes and effects of the coin circulation disruption that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic. The paper identifies the factors that contributed to the coin circulation disruption, including a significant drop in coin deposits since the outset of the pandemic, a reduction in new coin production at the U.S. Mint in the early days of the pandemic. The Federal Reserve has not had an adequate supply of coin to meet financial institution demand and has begun rationing coin allocations as a result.
The Federal Reserve and the U.S. Mint will use the paper as they work with a third-party consultant to review the coin supply chain and develop recommendations to improve it. In the meantime, the task force continues to encourage consumers to keep coins circulating by spending, depositing, exchanging or donating them, financial institutions to deposit excess coin inventory and retailers to accept and recirculate coins at their tills.
