Eesti Pank will this week start to issue into circulation new two-cent and 20-cent circulation coins dated 2020 to cover the short-term demand from shops for these coins. Two million two-cent coins and 1.5 million 20-cent coins stamped with the year 2020 have been minted by the Lithuanian mint.

The new two-cent and 20-cent coins will be available from the Omniva online shop from today and from the Eesti Pank Museum shop tomorrow. They are the same as earlier coins in design, but they have the minting year stamped as 2020.

An average of two truckloads of one and two-cent coins are brought to Estonia every year, because people receive such coins as change from shop tills but then use them later on very little, so that coins with very low nominal values are generally not returned to the central bank.

Because of this, the central bank has started a discussion about introducing rounding rules. It is not proposed that the prices of individual goods or services be rounded off, but only the final total to be paid at the till would be rounded if it is paid in cash. Rounding would be up or down to the nearest five cents. Experience from other countries has shown that this does not raise prices overall, but it substantially reduces the need for one and two-cent coins. The central bank proposes that rounding would only be used for purchases paid for in cash, and that card payments would continue to use the exact price. It would still be possible to pay with one and two-cent coins, but they would not be given out to shoppers from the cash tills.

A Eurobarometer survey carried out last year showed that 71% of Estonian consumers support the idea of introducing rounding rules.

The European Commission has launched a survey on one and two-cent coins.

For further information:
Mart Siilivask
Tel: 668 0965,
Mobile: 5697 9146
Email: [email protected]
Press enquiries: [email protected]