New King Charles coins now out, but don't expect to find any in your pocket soon: collector

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The first public distribution of coins featuring King Charles III left the Royal Canadian Mint last week, but a local collector says we’re not likely to see any in real circulation until well into the new year.

The Royal Canadian Mint held a public coin exchange last Tuesday in Ottawa for the newly minted coins with the new King’s likeness replacing the late Queen Elizabeth II’s, whose face has been featured on Canadian coins since 1953.

It was the first time the new coins have gone into public circulation, but Mark Francis, owner of the Clutterific online coin store in the Fredericton area, said even when they arrive at banks, collectors will be stashing away what they can.

“When 2024 comes around, a lot of collectors will hit their local bank and inquire about fresh coin rolls,” he said. “When rolls with the latest strike are available, we grab as many as we can afford, and store them unopened at home. That way, we can pay face value for mint coins.”

Steve Small, manager of Coin Cabinet in Saint John, said he received a shipment of the new non-circulation set of coins struck last month – the first strikes to feature the image of Charles.

“It’s the first time in my life to get new coins to sell with a different monarch,” he said. “We started selling them on Facebook and people were buying them up right away. They don’t last for very long, and I think the mint may be sold out of them now.”

The coin exchange in Ottawa on Tuesday was the first time the new coins have gone into circulation. For $3.40 each, customers received one each of the toonies, loonies, quarters, 50-cent coins, nickels and dimes showing Charles – who ascended to the throne earlier this year.

In November, the Royal Canadian Mint said it planned to start circulating “a small volume” of coins in all denominations this month before “meeting new market demand through the national coin management system.”

Small expects to start seeing the coins turning up in people’s change in January, but it’ll likely take until June for all denominations to be seen.

“It can be tough to get brand-new coins at the bank where they don’t always order them. You’re more likely to find them at McDonald’s, Tim Hortons, liquor stores, grocery stores, or anywhere that gets their coins delivered to them by a security company,” he said.