Coins

Coins for Investment

When we are referring to this particular category which is the most sought after in our current days, we are talking mainly about coins made out of silver and gold. This type of investment, which represents the physical form of investing into precious metals like silver and gold, is a subject of international interest for many people that want to have as part of their portfolios precious metals as well.

Gold coins have a high purity in general and are priced in accordance with the gold spot price plus a premium which depends on its rarity and on the demand exhibited by investors or collectors for that particular item. The gold coin with the highest purity which is available to buyers is the Canadian Mounties which has a purity of 99.999%.

The next in line are those with 99.99% fineness out of which we could mention the Canadian Maple Leaf, the Chinese Panda, the Krugerrand, the American Eagle and the Vienna Philharmonic. These coins are all made of 24 carats gold, of pure gold that is why they make for perfect investments and especially they represent incredibly beautiful investments, even for persons that do not have available an incredible amount of funds.

Silver coins are known as the first currency of civilization used to facilitate trade and today are regarded as a store of value being produced from silver in a high purity and a much affordable option than the gold ones. Silver is also the choice when we are talking about commemorative coins although they are also made out of gold like it is the case with the Sovereign.

In this category are comprised the American eagle with the face value of 1 US dollars and also the most popular one, the Canadian Maple Leaf with a purity of 99.99% silver therefore the purest silver coin around the world, and the Vienna Philharmonic denominated in Euro and with a purity of 99.90%.

General Facts about Coins

These small but important pieces for our modern society, representing a cash form besides banknotes, are made in general from precious metals, are produced in large quantities at a standard weight in the shape of a disc, and have the status of legal tender.

The rule that applies to coins is that their face value surpasses the value of the metal that it is used in producing them by government mints, a rule that it is broken due to inflation when the price of the metal increases. That is when the old coins are pulled from the market being replaced by new one with a changed composition to match the economic situation. These exceptions happened in the case of the US penny minted before 1982 and the US dime, quarter, dollar, and half dollar minted before 1965, when the price of copper increased.

Concerning the price of coins and their value there is a slight difference in the fact that their value is established when a holder wants to sell a certain coin and he determines how much it would worth if he would sell it today and it is considered to be smaller than the cost to replace it. The price or the retail price is the amount for which coins are sold on the market.

Unusual Fact about Coins

In the 18th and 19th centuries coins exceeded the value they represent for us today, they became unusual objects on which convicted criminals deported in Australia wrote their thoughts and messages for their loved ones. These rare coins are kept in the National Museum of Australia under the name of convict love tokens.