The Royal Canadian Mint announced April 10 that the long-awaited new $1 and $2 coins, featuring security measures for an increasingly digital world, would begin entering circulation the following day.

That announcement regarding the evolution of Canadian currency followed the unexpected jolt March 29 when the RCM announced it would end production of the 1-cent coin sometime in April.

The new $1 and $2 coins are being struck from the RCM's patented multi-ply plated steel alloy, which has already been in use for the 1-, 5-, 10- and 25-cent coins for about a decade.

The composition features a steel core with alternating layers of metals such as copper, nickel and brass. The resulting coins are more durable and secure than other compositions and more economical to produce, according to the RCM.

Perhaps the most tantalizing aspect of the new coinage, and the area that could be the most misunderstood, is a patented process that has been branded as Digital Non-Reactive Activation.

The RCM first publicly acknowledged the DNA technology in background information buried at its website with the April 10 announcement about the new coins, where it discussed the debut of the technology despite the fact that, according to one spokesperson, it is not ready to be fully implemented.

If the system were to be implemented, this data could be stored in a database and used to confirm the authenticity of every coin manufactured by the RCM even as the coin experiences normal wear during its life cycle.

To read the complete Coin World article, see:Canada introduces newest coin technology(www.coinworld.com/articles/canada-introduces-newest-coin-technology/)

To read the Mint's web page announcement, see:New $1 and $2 Background(www.mint.ca/store/mint/learn/background-6800008)