The Future of Coins
From unexpected materials and embedded technology to cutting-edge minting techniques, today’s innovations offer a glimpse at what the coins of tomorrow might become.
Image courtesy CIT
It can be hard to predict what new coin innovations there will be in the future, but it can be interesting to try to think of all the different possibilities. Even day-to-day technology isn’t what we thought it would be 50 years ago; we were supposed to have flying cars by now.
Let’s explore some of the different possibilities of technology that could come to pass.
First is a coin’s material. Traditional coins as we know them have been made from precious metals like gold and silver, and then eventually copper-nickel alloys that we see in circulation today. But what if coins move away from metals altogether? This isn’t a totally out-of-the-ballpark guess, as there have been many experiments with a coin’s material before. From glass pennies to polymer-coated euros, the use of different, sustainable materials has been discussed many times over. In February of this year, Numismatic News asked readers, “If coins could be made out of any material, what would be the coolest to see?” While this question pulled on the imagination and not practicality, predicting the possibilities of the far future isn’t much different. Some of the responses sent in by readers included precious gems like rubies, emeralds, and sapphires, as well as certifiable meteoritic material. Of course, there are also other types of metals, some of which have already been experimented with for commemorative coins, such as Austria’s silver-niobium coins or Kazakhstan’s silver-tantalum coins. Perhaps, as people continue to move towards cashless, physical money will become entirely plastic.
the first coins to include a QR code.
Perhaps the coins themselves will never become plastic, but that doesn’t mean coins aren’t moving with advancement towards the digital age. QR codes have been finding their way onto coins since 2011. The first coins to integrate a QR code were the Royal Dutch Mint’s commemorative coin celebrating the 100th anniversary of its building in the city of Utrecht. On the reverse of these gold and silver coins was a QR code displayed in the center, positioned on an old screw press. Collectors could scan the QR code and be redirected to a commemorative page on the Royal Dutch Mint’s website. The coin went on to win the 2013 Coin of the Year Award and the Most Innovative Coin.
This Monnaie de Paris coin includes a microchip. (Image courtesy Monnaie de Paris)
In a similar vein, coins have begun to feature microchips. The Monnaie de Paris has released coins with an integrated microchip; the 2024 edition went on to win the Most Innovative Coin category of the Coin of the Year Awards in 2025.
Beyond materials and the move toward the digital age, coins themselves are changing. From different shapes to color effects, glowing in the dark, and even some flying coins! The amount of detail that can now be added to a coin’s design has increased exponentially as well. CIT is a great example of this: they use Smartminting©, which has allowed them to create impressive high-relief coins, as well as a few low-relief, while still maintaining the quality expected of a collectible coin.
comes to coins, not only with a low-relief, but also breaking through the traditional collar.
Image courtesy CIT
The production of coins has been evolving. Coin designs are being run through digital programs to ensure even the smallest details are perfected. With laser engraving technology, dies are no longer painstakingly hand-engraved.
Mints around the world are experimenting and pushing the limits on what can be done with coins and minting technology. The possibilities are endless on what coins could look like in the future, and it’s only a matter of time before some of the “special effects” that have been presented in NCLT commemoratives will start to become the norm in our pocket change.
The futuristic coinage is now:
