On November 12th, 2025 the United States joined Canada, Australia and New Zealand in retiring the one cent coin, or otherwise known as the penny. The final pennies were struck at the Philadelphia Mint and have not been released into circulation. However, it is planned they will be put up for auction.
The United States government has ended the 232 year production of new circulating pennies. This move was mandated by President Donald Trump in February 2025 as a cost cutting measure. There was significant waste in producing the coin, as the labor and material was more costly than the coin itself. In 2024 it cost around 4 cents to produce a single penny. The Treasury Department expects to save around $56 million annually by ceasing the production. This coin was one of the first coins authorized by the Coinage Act of 1972, with its manufacturing beginning in 1973. The penny’s composition changed over the years, but since 1982, it has been primarily zinc with a thin copper plating.
With this icon of currency being eliminated, many people are scared of what that means for the future in business. Forbes reported in an article titled “Is Eliminating the Penny Equitable?” claiming, “ only 7% of the U.S. transactions are made with cash, so the group that doesn’t have access to credit or digital platforms will be the ones who are affected.” With the supply of new pennies gone, retailers may round cash transactions to the nearest five cents. This seems impossible to live with, but the practice is similar to Canada and Australia when they phased out their lowest value coins in 2012 and 1992.
On the other hand, it is said that the estimated 300 billion pennies already in existence remain legal tender and will keep their one cent value indefinitely. Even though the creation of the penny has stopped, the coins will not vanish overnight; instead they are expected to slowly fall out of circulation as they fall out of use into the iconic coin jars and “take a penny” trays. Even though the penny has become impractical to keep up with, there is worry about other coins futures. The cost of the nickel has raised questions about their future with it costing nearly 14 cents to produce. If the nickel were to be withdrawn there would be no reason to fear what our lives would come to because New Zealand had withdrawn theirs from circulation in 2006.
The Philadelphia Mint produced 232 final pennies bearing the Omega symbol, representing one for each year this coin was in production, as well as three additional coins for display at the Treasury as well as other institutions. The buyers of these remembrance coins are advised to get them professionally authenticated for future verification of their pedigree. Each coin is estimated to bring up to one million dollars at this action an expert had suggested. Then with the second and third pressings could get up to $10,000 to $20,000 each. Ultimately, the final market value of these historic coins will be decided by the dedicated collectors and the passage of time.
