Discontinuation of the Penny: United States halts production of the One-Cent Coin - One-Cent Coins: Cessation of Minting by U.S. Minting Authorities
The United States has decided to discontinue the production of one-cent coins, marking the end of a 230-year legacy. The Treasury Department announced on Thursday that it has placed the final order for one-cent blanks this month, indicating that new one-cent coins will no longer be minted from early 2026.
This decision is due to escalating production costs. Over the years, the cost to produce a one-cent coin has increased significantly, from 1.3 cents per coin in 2012 to 3.69 cents in 2022. The move is expected to save $56 million annually.
Both political parties have supported this decision, citing the increasing production costs as a primary concern. The one-cent coin, often referred to as a penny, is made of zinc and copper.
President Donald Trump ordered Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to end production of the penny in February. In the future, cash transactions will be rounded to the nearest five-cent value. The last penny to be minted will bear the image of President Abraham Lincoln, as it has since 1909.
The one-cent coin is also a subject of debate in the Eurozone, with countries like Finland effectively phasing it out. In Germany, discussions about the practicality and monetary efficiency of small denominations are ongoing. According to the National Cash Forum, a rounding rule for cash payments in Germany was recommended in March 2025, which would make two-cent coins obsolete.
Germany, however, has yet to officially decide to stop producing the one-cent euro coin. The debate over the usefulness of one- and two-cent coins is ongoing, with no concrete legislative steps taken as of May 2025. Any formal end to these coins would require either a national rounding policy or an EU-wide decision, but neither step has been taken as of now.
In the EU, several countries, including Belgium, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Slovakia, and Estonia, have already implemented rounding rules for cash transactions, effectively reducing the use of one- and two-cent coins. This trend reflects a broader debate within the European Union about the need to eliminate small denominations due to their low purchasing power, high production and environmental costs, and lack of public support.
This financial decision by the United States to discontinue the production of one-cent coins, also known as pennies, is not unique to the US; it's also a topic of debate in the Eurozone, particularly with countries like Germany weighing on the practicality and monetary efficiency of small denominations like the one- and two-cent coins. The escalating production costs and low purchasing power of these small denominations make them a focus of discussion in both business and political circles, as well as in general news.
