he Royal Mint has increased its production of collectible coins in an attempt to appeal to a wider market as the use of cash declines across the country.

In August, economists at the Bank of England said that rising inflation was strengthening the case for the removal from circulation of copper coins, too often "lost to theether" or "down back of the sofa".

The number of 1p and 2pc coins produced by the Royal Mint last year fell by 76pc and 94pc respectively. The production of 10p pieces fell by 80pc - yet the official coin makerreleased a record number of commemorative 10p pieces in 2018.

This reduction is part of the Royal Mint's effort to expand its business services beyond cash. It opened the "Royal Mint Experience", a South Wales factory tourof the coins being made, at the start of the year, and plans to boost its profits by "adding sales and service to the historic coin collector market".

The latest series of 10p collectibles, the "Great British Coin Hunt", features images of British culture corresponding to each letter of the alphabet on one side ofthe coins. These include B for James Bond, C for cricket, F for fish and chips - and even Q for queueing.

A spokesman for the British Pobjoy Mint, a non-royal coin maker based in Surrey, said she has noticed the increase of young people taking part in coin collecting and othernumismatic activities. Managing director Taya Pobjoy said the key is finding subjects that draw their interest.

Commemorative coin designs traditionally focused on royal occasions or significant events in political history. Recent releases have broadened the subject matter: they havemarked 50 years of work by conservationists the WWF, and the 60th anniversary of Paddington Bear's first adventure. This collectible had its own adventure, when a mistaken earlyrelease of a coin sold for more than £16,000 in June.

A spokesman for Westminster Collections, a distributor of collectible coins and stamps, said the rise in production of commemorative coins marking popular culture has led topeople checking their change more frequently.

"There is definitely a noticeable increased interest, fuelled by numerous newspaper stories, the popularity of the Beatrix Potter 50p series and the introduction of thenew 12-sided £1 coin and polymer banknote."

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Collectible coin production rises as cash falls out of favour(https://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/future-of-money/collectible-coin-production-rises-cash-falls-favour/)