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Exclusive: Brexit 50p coins now a collectors' item

Undated handout photo issued by HM Treasury of the Brexit coin, a 50p bearing the inscription 'Peace, prosperity and friendship with all nations' and the date the UK leaves the EU. PA Photo. Issue date: Friday January 24, 2020. Around 3 million Brexit coins will enter banks, Post Offices and shops nationwide from Friday 31 January, with a further 7 million entering circulation later this year. See PA story POLITICS Brexit Coin. Photo credit should read: HM Treasury/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used in for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder. - HM Treasury/PA Wire/HM Treasury/PA Wire

Where have all the Brexit 50p coins gone? It has been a question asked for months by many Leaver voters who wanted a piece of history in their wallets.

Royal Mint has now produced 10 million of the coins, of which seven million have entered circulation. Yet they appear to be hard to come by in shops and restaurants.

Now, the Royal Mint thinks it might have that answer, saying it believes that they are dropping out of circulation because they are "some of the most coveted by collectors" who are looking after them at home as a "keepsake".

There are 1.2 billion 50p coins in circulation and many different designs are produced annually which means Royal Mint is unable to keep track of the popularity of each one.

Yet judging by the sales of the commemorative versions of the Brexit 50p – some selling for more than £1,000 – they are proving to be incredibly popular.

Royal Mint said that more than 50,000 of the coins – including 3,000 gold coins worth more £1,000 each, and 47,000 solid silver Brexit 50p coins worth £60 each – have all sold out.

A spokesman for Royal Mint said: "The coins are in circulation. However, we anticipated that they would become some of the most coveted by collectors.

"Due to the historical significance of the UK’s decision to leave the EU, we believe many people who encounter a ‘Brexit’ 50p will add it to their existing coin collection, or retain it as a keepsake in their family."

Craig Mackinlay, a Conservative MP who first proposed the idea of a 50p coin to mark the UK's exit from the EU to the Treasury, said: "I have never seen one."

He added that the Royal Mint should produce more of the coins.

Undated handout photo issued by HM Treasury of Chancellor of the Exchequer Sajid Javid holding the Brexit coin, a 50p bearing the inscription 'Peace, prosperity and friendship with all nations' and the date the UK leaves the EU. PA Photo. Issue date: Sunday January 26, 2020. Around 3 million Brexit coins will enter banks, Post Offices and shops nationwide from Friday 31 January, with a further 7 million entering circulation later this year. See PA story POLITICS Brexit Coin. Photo credit should read: HM Treasury/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used in for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder. - PA/PA

Royal Mint said that, for now, it is not planning to produce any more. A spokesman sad: "The actual demand for coins issued into circulation is determined by UK banks and Post Offices.

"We then respond by issuing coins on behalf of HM Treasury who decide how many new coins should be issued into circulation.

"In the event that more stocks of UK coins are required to meet demand, we would seek approval to produce more. However, at the moment there is enough supply of fifty pence pieces."

The Brexit 50p coin – stamped with the legend "Peace, Prosperity and Friendship with all nations" – was issued at the end of January, the fourth special 50p piece struck to mark the UK's 45 year membership of the EU and European Economic Community.