Check your Euro coins before pocketing them

15 January 2007 - Issue : 712

The number of counterfeit Euro coins increased considerably in 2006 from 2005 but “is insignificant compared to the total number of 69 billion genuine coins in circulation,” stated the European Commission on January 12. The commission said, “In 2006, nearly 164,000 counterfeit Euro coins were removed from circulation, mainly by national Central Banks. This represents an increase of over 63,000 compared to 2005.”

In addition, almost 14,000 counterfeit Euro coins were seized during law enforcement operations before coming into circulation. Citing the competent national authorities, the commission said that one more illegal mint was dismantled in 2006 in Italy. This brought to 12 the total number of illegal mints discovered since the introduction of the Euro in 2002.

The most counterfeited Euro coin denomination continued to be the two Euro, accounting for over 86 percent of the total counterfeits in 2006. The coins with the German national side are the most frequently reproduced, but also coins with the sides of all other Euro area members are found. Overall, more than 550,000 counterfeit Euro coins have been removed from circulation or seized before use, since 2002.

The commission attributed the large rise in the number of counterfeit coins recorded in 2006 to a large extent to stronger efforts by the competent authorities to remove counterfeits from circulation. 

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