Posts Tagged ‘UK’
Why you should be collecting £5 Coins
We’re often asked by Change Checkers what can they collect once they’ve completed their collections of 50ps, £1s and £2s.
Quite simply, there’s only one answer. £5 coins. These are my reasons why:
1. A Treasure Hunt
In the past, collectors were able to get £5 coins from banks and post offices, but nowadays some of the older designs are like gold-dust. And more often than not, new UK £5 issues are snapped up by collectors on release, so it can be quite a challenge tracking down every single one for a complete collection. You can source online, in auctions and of course from Change Checker! We’ve built up some superb stock over the years which we are now making available to collectors.
2. When less is more
In this case – interest. It’s obvious that popular coin issues create instant and on-going demand for a coin, but the same can be said for ‘less interesting’ coin designs. Let me explain…
This may come as a surprise, but a coin that is issued with a less interesting theme or design and is not initially popular with collectors, can be a real hidden gem for coin collections. This is because the less coins that are sold, the lower the final number of units that are available to future collectors.
But whilst most collectors would shy away from unpopular themes, it is these very coins that are likely to become the most sought after in years to come. And the 2011 Prince Philip £5 coin is a prime example…
Back in 2011 a UK £5 coin was issued by The Royal Mint in celebration of the 90th birthday of Prince Philip.
The coins design featured a specially commissioned portrait of Philip by Mark Richards FRBS. Just 18,730 of these coins were struck in Brilliant Uncirculated presentation packs making it one of the rarest £5 coins ever.
And because of this, the coin is extremely sought after by collectors and is virtually impossible to get hold of on the secondary market.
3. Only available for a limited time
As you probably already know, coins with a lower mintage are often the most sought-after by collectors in years to come. And the coins with popular themes are timeless pieces of numismatic history that only become more and more desireable as time passes.
£5 coins are only available for a limited time and when you add to this the intense interest in the event the coin is commemorating (usually important royal events), you have a hugely collectable coin, sought after by collectors from all over the world.
4. Historically valuable
One of the key points Change Checkers look out for when deciding which coins to add to their collection, is the possibility that the value of that coin will increase and we’ve seen it happen many times before with circulation coins. The Kew Gardens 50p for example.
One thing you can be sure of though is the historical interest of £5 coins will be worth more to future generations than the £5 face value now. When you take all the above points into account, there is no doubt that the importance of £5 coins ensures the coins remain sought-after and collectable.
So do you have any £5 coins in your collection? Let us know via Facebook, Twitter or leave a comment below!
Interested in finding out if you own one of the rarest £5 coins? Click here to find out more>>
Exclusive £15 SAVING – Own the FIRST EVER UK £5
The UK’s FIRST EVER £5 coin was fittingly issued to celebrate the 90th birthday of Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother.
A limited number of these are available to our collectors at the exclusive discounted price of JUST £9.99 (+p&p) – that’s a £15 SAVING.
Click here to secure your Queen Mother 90th Birthday £5 for just £9.99 (+p&p)
Poll: Choose your all-time favourite £1 coin design
As part of the Great One Pound Coin Race, we want to find out Britain’s ultimate favourite £1 coin.
Over the last couple of months we’ve been asking Change Checkers to vote for their favourite UK, Scottish, Northern Irish, Welsh and English £1 coin designs.
Now this is the last poll left to vote in until we find out which £1 coin is Britain’s all-time favourite design.
Please vote for your favourite £1 coin from the finalists in the below poll:
Which Beatrix Potter 50p Coins are the scarcest?
With Monday’s announcement of four new Beatrix Potter 50p coins leading to as many as 50,000 collectors queuing at The Royal Mint’s website to reserve the coins online, Change Checker can reveal which of last year’s 5 Beatrix Potter circulation 50p coins are currently the most sought after by collectors.
Using data unique collecting and swap data, Change Checker will be publishing its first-ever 50p “Scarcity Index” later this month but ahead of the full publication, we can give you a sneak preview as to which of last year’s Beatrix Potter 50p coins are currently most sought after by collectors.
How rare are the Beatrix Potter 50p coins?
Final mintages are yet to be published but the Change Checker “Scarcity Index” scores each of the UK’s 54 circulation 50p coin designs out of 100 to determine their relative scarcity.
Results suggest that Jemima Puddle-Duck is currently the 6th most difficult coin to find in your change, with Squirrel Nutkin coming in close behind. Peter Rabbit has certainly become easier over the last few months but still sits 20th out 54 issues.
How valuable are my Beatrix Potter 50p coins?
Currently you can still buy base metal collector versions of the Beatrix Potter 50p coins direct from the Royal Mint for £10 and Change Checker Certified Brilliant Uncirculated versions for £3.99, rather than wait to find them in your change. That has meant that their values have been pretty much capped.
But The Royal Mint has confirmed that they are not striking any more 2016 collector editions, which means that when current stocks of the Brilliant Uncirculated version are exhausted, collectors’ only choice will be to search for circulation versions.
So whilst the 2016 Beatrix Potter 50p coins are not likely to follow the example of the ultra-rare Kew Gardens 50p, which achieves prices of between £70 and £100, collectors may see prices rise from around 6 times face value to somewhere between 10 and 12 times face value over the coming months.
But don’t forget, the joy of Change Checking is that you may receive a Beatrix Potter 50p coin in your change at any time for just its face value – 50p.