Hungary: missing 1 and 2 forint coins

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Recalled coins worth more than HUF 2 bln have yet to be returned
March 1st, 2011

Although HUF 1 and 2 coins have not been used for exactly three years, people still might have coins worth HUF 2 billion with them in pockets and purses, the National Bank of Hungary (MNB) said.

The coins' circulation was discontinued on March 1, 2008. The MNB's monetary council argued that most of the coins were hardly used, they ended up lost and therefore did not take part in the cash flow. Since prices of precious metals grew worldwide coin production also meant remarkable additional costs for the central bank operating from public money, causing extra costs therefore for the country.

Three years later, MNB said the withdrawal of HUF 1 and 2 coins saved HUF 3.5-4 billion yearly. MNB sold the withdrawn coins as metal waste on international tenders, collecting HUF 1.2 billion. There could still be another 846 million pieces of HUF 1 and 663 million pieces of HUF 2 with people according to the central bank's data. The overall value of these is HUF 2 billion 172 million.

Source: Budapest Business Journal

[Coinsforever]

Does these withdrawn coins are of quite high demand among collectors due to numismatic values or so.

Cheers 

[Bimat]

I don't think so. Getting modern Hungarian coins is not a big challenge IMO..And they are not as avidly collected as other world coins (Russian coins for example)

Aditya

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Agreed. The article says: these coins will never be expensive. This is not surprising. The experience is that a surprisingly large number of coins will never be returned.

When the euro was introduced, the last figures I saw were around one third of the old coins assumed to be still in circulation were exchanged. Of course, some were lost, some moved abroad and some went into collections, but the vast majority is slowly turning into rust and scrap metal in forgotten corners of the chaos that we call our worldly possessions.

Peter

[Coinsforever]

Agreed. The article says: these coins will never be expensive. This is not surprising. The experience is that a surprisingly large number of coins will never be returned.

When the euro was introduced, the last figures I saw were around one third of the old coins assumed to be still in circulation were exchanged. Of course, some were lost, some moved abroad and some went into collections, but the vast majority is slowly turning into rust and scrap metal in forgotten corners of the chaos that we call our worldly possessions.

Peter

Thanks for clarifications Aditya & Peter  , usually due to carelessness general individuals pay less attention & efforts  to return such withdrawn coins . For example  in case of withdrawn  25 paisa coins  those who possess I am sure only a few of them had returned else others just keep it considering  time consuming process & less value associated with coins.

Where as in case of withdrawn Bank notes most individuals usually turn up to return or swap.

Cheers