Last year, the Bank of Korea placed no new orders for coins for circulation. No new 10-, 50-, 100- or 500-won coins were minted. This is the first time that has happened.
As digital payments surge, the use of coins as well as banknotes continues to decline. Also, with international raw material prices rising, it now costs 40 won at expense to produce a single 10-won coin. It has been 20 years since production and circulation of 1-won and 5-won coins were fully halted.
◇ Among 10-won coins, 90% are "sleeping coins"… material costs up 1.5 times in 10 years
According to a Bank of Korea survey, the share of payments made with cash (coins and banknotes) fell from 37.7% in 2014 to 15.9% in 2024. In 10 years, it dropped to less than half. The spread of credit card and mobile payments is the reason.
Coins held by individuals, corporations and financial institutions are decreasing every year. The totals were 2.3575 trillion won in 2020, 2.3322 trillion won in 2021, 2.3284 trillion won in 2022, 2.3008 trillion won in 2023, 2.2524 trillion won in 2024, and 2.2169 trillion won in 2025.
In particular, many of the coins held by the household are left unattended. By amount, 76.9% are actually piled up without being used—so-called "sleeping coins," the Bank of Korea (BOK) found in a 2021 survey. The proportion of coins left idle was higher for lower denominations: 10 won (89.7%) and 50 won (89.6%).
While coin use is declining, the cost of minting coins is rising. A 10-won coin is made of 48% copper and 52% aluminum. Over the past 10 years, copper prices rose 178% and aluminum prices rose 111%. As a result, it costs 40 won to make a single 10-won coin. In addition, the manufacturing cost of 50-, 100- and 500-won coins is said to be higher than their face value.
◇ Bank of Korea (BOK) recirculates coins collected from the market… 3.5 billion won a year from scrapped coin sales
Instead of minting new coins, the Bank of Korea is collecting coins already in circulation and putting them back into the market. Last year, the value of coins collected exceeded the value issued by 35.5 billion won. This figure has been positive for six straight years.
Some of the coins collected are not recirculated but scrapped. The Bank of Korea (BOK) sells coins that can no longer function as currency due to damage or wear as metal. In 2022, the BOK earned 3.49 billion won from coin sales. Even if the annual volume sold since then stayed the same, given the sharp rise in the prices of copper, zinc and aluminum used in coins, the BOK's revenue from coin sales likely increased.
◇ Bank of Korea (BOK) says "we are not considering a full abolition of coins"
The Bank of Korea is not considering the full abolition of coins. Coins are still used in traditional markets. They are also used in vending machines and amusement facilities. Supermarkets sometimes run "990 won discount events," giving 10 won back in change.
A Bank of Korea (BOK) official said, "We are adjusting coin production based on the amount previously issued, inventory on hand and people's demand for coins, but we have no plans to abolish coin issuance itself."
Meanwhile, the Bank of Korea (BOK) sells a "Korea coin set" every year. It separately mints 1-, 5-, 10-, 50-, 100- and 500-won coins stamped with the relevant year of production and packages them in a case. Production of this set has been increasing every year, rising from 60,000 in 2021 to 90,000 in 2022, 200,000 in 2023 and 160,000 in 2024.