Forum: Author Hangout

Canadian currency

Switch Blayde 🚫

I'm leaving for Canada Tuesday so I went through my collection of non-U.S. coins from previous trips. I found 2 that say Canada on them – on the back of the coin.

I was wondering if anyone could tell me if they are still good.

One is big. It's silver with a gold middle. On the back it says "Canada" on the top and "Dollars" on the bottom. In front of "Dollars" there's a number "2". I assume this is a Canadian 2-dollar coin. Queen E is on the front. It's dated 1996.

The other one is smaller. It's round, but the edges are flattened. There's a man's bust on the front and the words seem to be in Latin. On the back is a beaver. Above the beaver it says "5 cents". Below the beaver it says "Canada". Under that is the date: 1949.

So I assume the first one is a 2-dollar coin and the second a 5 cents coin (Canadian). Anyone know if they're good in Canada? (Lazeez?)

(I have other coins with Queen E on the front, but they don't say Canada on the back so I assume they're British sterling.)

Thanks.

Replies: Dominions Son mauidreamer Remus2 Dicrostonyx sunseeker Switch Blayde Rodeodoc

Dominions Son 🚫

@Switch Blayde

AFIK: coins don't expire, ever. The biggest issue given the age is they might be worth more than their face value to a collector.

Replies: awnlee jawking Keet AmigaClone helmut_meukel

awnlee jawking 🚫

@Dominions Son

AFIK: coins don't expire, ever.

IIRC, in the UK, old coins continue to be accepted by major banks for a while but eventually you have to get them exchanged centrally (Royal Mint? Bank Of England?) and it's not worth the faff.

AJ

Replies: helmut_meukel

helmut_meukel 🚫

@awnlee jawking

IIRC, in the UK, old coins continue to be accepted by major banks for a while but eventually you have to get them exchanged centrally

AFAIK, pre-decimal (1 pound = 20 shilling = 240 penny) British coins below £1 are no legal tender.
For obsolete decimal coins see the provided link.
The gold sovereign (=1£) although no longer in circulation, is still legal tender in the United Kingdom.

HM.

Replies: awnlee jawking Switch Blayde

awnlee jawking 🚫

@helmut_meukel

AFAIK, pre-decimal (1 pound = 20 shilling = 240 penny) British coins below £1 are no legal tender.

That sounds right.

You might be able to get them reimbursed at equivalent value via the Bank of England but you'd need a lot of pre-decimal pennies, for example, to make a sum that' worthwhile.

AJ

Switch Blayde 🚫

@helmut_meukel

British coins below £1 are no legal tender.

I guess that makes all my Sterling coins (from previous trips to the UK) obsolete, like coins that say pence on them.

Replies: awnlee jawking helmut_meukel

awnlee jawking 🚫

@Switch Blayde

I guess that makes all my Sterling coins (from previous trips to the UK) obsolete, like coins that say pence on them.

Those who are savvy might be able to substitute them for the proper coins in vending machines in other countries ;-)

AJ

Replies: helmut_meukel

helmut_meukel 🚫

@awnlee jawking

Those who are savvy might be able to substitute them for the proper coins in vending machines in other countries ;-)

Like the Syrian 10 pound coin used in Norway for the 20 kroner coin. The Syrian coin was worth (in 2o17) 39 Norwegian øre.

HM.

helmut_meukel 🚫

@Switch Blayde

I guess that makes all my Sterling coins (from previous trips to the UK) obsolete, like coins that say pence on them

Certainly if they are pre-decimal coins.
In 1971 on Decimal Day the British pound got divided into 100 (new) pence until then it was 240 pence to one pound.
To distinguish between old and new penny coins the first issues have "new" penny/pence on them. In later years the 'new' was dropped. BTW, the abbreviation for the old penny is d for the new it's p.

But some of the new decimal coins were withdrawn in the past years. So you have to look at the minting year and compare to this list to know if they are old invalid coins.

HM.

FYI, reading about British coins, I found the quarter farthing, a British coin, produced for circulation in Ceylon 1839–1853, which, at a face value of ⅟₁₆d. (£⅟₃₈₄₀), is the lowest denomination of coin ever minted for the United Kingdom.

Keet 🚫

@Dominions Son

AFIK: coins don't expire, ever.

The Dutch guilder coins are no longer a valid currency and can no longer be converted to euros by the Dutch Central Bank (DNB). Dutch guilder paper money can be converted until 2025 or 2032 (depending on the value) and only at the Dutch Central Bank in Haarlem.
Of course this is different than old coins from the same currency but it proves that in some cases coins (and paper) can expire to only have collectors value.
The Dutch Central Bank estimated in 2019 that there are still 25 million banknotes in circulation.

Replies: Dominions Son

Dominions Son 🚫

@Keet

Of course this is different than old coins from the same currency but it proves that in some cases coins (and paper) can expire to only have collectors value.

No, a coin losing official value due to a change in the currency system is not the same as the coin "expiring".

"Expiring" would be the coin becoming worthless at a date fixed when the coin was minted.

Replies: helmut_meukel

helmut_meukel 🚫

@Dominions Son

"Expiring" would be the coin becoming worthless at a date fixed when the coin was minted.

That's your personal definition of the word expire,
here is one from Wiktionary:

Verb
expire (third-person singular simple present expires, present participle expiring, simple past and past participle expired)

1.(intransitive) To die.
Synonyms: see Thesaurus:die
The patient expired in hospital.
2.(intransitive) To lapse and become invalid.
My library card will expire next week.
3.(intransitive) To come to an end; to conclude.
(transitive, intransitive) To exhale; to breathe out.
Antonym: inspire
4.(transitive) To give forth insensibly or gently, as a fluid or vapour; to emit in minute particles.
5.(transitive) To bring to a close; to terminate.

Your definition corresponds with 2.

HM.

AmigaClone 🚫

@Dominions Son

AFIK: coins don't expire, ever. The biggest issue given the age is they might be worth more than their face value to a collector.

I can think of two ways for coins to 'expire'.

1) The country that issued the currency the coins are from ceases to exist.

2) The country that issued those coins declares them to no longer be currency after a certain date.

Possible versions of #2.

2.1) Could be because the country was eliminating fractions of their currency unit. For example Brazil has eliminated their equivalent of 'cents' a few times.

2.2) The country has started issuing a new currency, stating the old one no longer being valid to pay debts after a certain date.

2.3) A country has adopted a new currency that is either issued by another country or by a multinational organization and has declared their former currency to no longer be a valid to pay debts after a certain date.

Even 'expired' coins would likely generate some interest from collectors depending on their rarity.

Replies: Dominions Son glassteve1

Dominions Son 🚫

@AmigaClone

1) The country that issued the currency the coins are from ceases to exist.

2) The country that issued those coins declares them to no longer be currency after a certain date.

No, neither of those things is "expiring". Expiring is purely time based and the expiration date would be fixed when the coin was minted.

Replies: Remus2

Remus2 🚫

@Dominions Son

If the history of currencies is anything to go by, a redenomination is more likely to occur as opposed to artificially expiring it.
The Euro was a special case in history. At some point, the home countries currencies within the EU needed to die in order to have a unified currency.

glassteve1 🚫

@AmigaClone

hi in canada a penny is no longer accepted as currency dont remember when but i still find cups and baggies of the damn things

Replies: mauidreamer

mauidreamer 🚫
Updated:

@glassteve1

Canadian penny stopped being minted in 2012 because they cost more to mint than their value. Starting in 2013 or 2014, CAN GOV pushed businesses to begin rounding the final values of transactions to nearest 5 cents (i.e 8 to 2 goes up/dn to nearest 0, 3 to 7 up/dn to nearest 5).

However, the penny coin retains its one cent value, and if you have cups and baggies of the damn things you can take them to your bank to be deposited and credited to your accounts .. just don't ask for them back ...

Replies: StarFleet Carl

StarFleet Carl 🚫

@mauidreamer

penny coin

I have about twenty pounds of US pennies. Clean the oxidation off them, glue them to some wood, and pour resin on them. Makes for nice table tops or conversation piece coasters.

helmut_meukel 🚫

@Dominions Son

coins don't expire, ever

The issuing authority can declare them invalid.
This happened to most Danish øre coins:
1 and 2 øre per 4/1/73
5 and 10 øre per 7/1/89
25 øre per 10/1/08 (exchanged by banks until 10/1/11).
Only the 50 øre coin remains.

Sweden is one step farther:
1 and 2 öre 1972
5 and 25 öre 1985
10 öre 1992
50 öre 2010
Goods can still be priced in öre, but all sums are rounded to the nearest krona when paying with cash.

Same in Norway, the last was the 50 øre coin, withdrawn 2012, but øre still exist electronically.

HM.

Replies: Dominions Son

Dominions Son 🚫

@helmut_meukel

The issuing authority can declare them invalid.

Yes, but I doubt this is applicable to the Canadian coins.

As I said, the biggest issue with old coins in a still valid currency is that they may be worth more than face value to a collector. Why give that value away by spending them?

mauidreamer 🚫

@Switch Blayde

Careful with assumptions, there ...

While not all Commonwealth nations honor E II, I can offhand think of a half-doz that still show her on their currancy ..

Replies: Switch Blayde

Switch Blayde 🚫

@mauidreamer

Careful with assumptions, there ...

But both coins say "Canada" on the back.

Replies: mauidreamer

mauidreamer 🚫

@Switch Blayde

OK, ya got me. Yer last assumption ...

Remus2 🚫
Updated:

@Switch Blayde

For the face value you've mentioned, I think you'd be better of putting them away. Eventually they will get rare and worth more.

Dicrostonyx 🚫

@Switch Blayde

For the $2 coin, yes, that's still in normal circulation.

The 1949 nickel might have some value above 5 cents if it's in good shape, but it wouldn't be some giant windfall. The highest a circulated coin from this year has ever sold at auction is $5.50. If you happen to be visiting someone with kids it might be a cool gift, but otherwise it's just a coin.

By the way, most Canadian stores will accept US coins at par. So it's not a good deal for you, but if you don't mind losing 23 cents on the dollar don't stress if there are American coins in your pocket. Some tourist shops will take US currency at a reduced rate, but most stores will require you exchange bills for Canadian. Tourist areas often also have exchange kiosks or shops in central locations so that you don't have to find a bank.

Also note that most Canadians these days don't use a lot of cash. If your bank card or credit card has the Interac symbol on the back then you can use direct pay just about everywhere. Most places allow tap payments if your bank allows them, but also have insert for chipped cards and swipe pay for older cards. Many places will also allow Plus (which is more common in the US), but Interac is the standard in Canada.

Note: As for your other coins, they could be from about 33 different countries. In addition to the UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, there are several Caribbean and African nations that still have the Queen on their currencies. Also, with older coins, there are a bunch of countries that used to have the Queen but don't any longer, such as Hong Kong, which removed the image as of 1993.

sunseeker 🚫

@Switch Blayde

is this your nickel?

https://www.coinsandcanada.com/coins-prices.php?coin=5-cents-1949&years=

and yes the "toonie" is still good :)

Switch Blayde 🚫

@Switch Blayde

When I was going through my coins, I found a really small one with a hole in the middle. I have no idea what country it came from. But why make a coin with a hole in it? to wear on a charm bracelet?

I also found one U.S. quarter and many dimes. I think they were when those coins had more silver content in them so I put them away. I guess I should go through them to see if any are valuable.

Replies: Dominions Son mauidreamer

Dominions Son 🚫

@Switch Blayde

When I was going through my coins, I found a really small one with a hole in the middle. I have no idea what country it came from. But why make a coin with a hole in it? to wear on a charm bracelet?

A round hole or a square hole? A square hole would indicate a very old Chinese coin. There are other countries including some European that had coins with round holes.

The point of the hole is probably to reduce the amount of metal required to make the coin.

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/224476362652314094/

http://portlandcoins.blogspot.com/2011/12/coins-with-holes.html

Replies: helmut_meukel

helmut_meukel 🚫

@Dominions Son

The point of the hole is probably to reduce the amount of metal required to make the coin.

For sorting or storing coins the hole is handy. Hammer long nails through a board, turn it around so the nails are pointing up and you can easily staple the coins with the nail in the hole. For storage hammer a second board on top so the coins can't spill when transported.

HM.

Replies: Dominions Son

Dominions Son 🚫

@helmut_meukel

Hammer long nails through a board, turn it around so the nails are pointing up and you can easily staple the coins with the nail in the hole. For storage hammer a second board on top so the coins can't spill when transported.

I don't think that works as an explanation of the ancient Chinese coins with square holes.

mauidreamer 🚫

@Switch Blayde

SB

Before I retired, I did a bit of intl traveling and thus always came back with "spare change" in whatever local currency. Sometimes, my PTBs sent me back to revisit a locale and I'd clean out my stock of local currency, but I still have a good sized ziplock bag with a lot of little bags and envelopes ...

Norway has 5 krone coin, Japan has both 5 yen and 50 yen coins, and Philippines has a 5 centavo coin with holes in the middle. I'm sure more are out there. If yours is small (less than a penny in size) and copper, its probably the 5 centavo from the RP.

Rodeodoc 🚫

@Switch Blayde

I'm late to reply but the coin with the "2" is a Toonie. An all gold coin the same size is a one dollar coin, called a Loonie because the first version had a loon on the front. Thus the $2 became a Toonie because we Canadians love our rhymes. The nickel is worthless except we have no pennies in Canada. I'd you're paying cash for a $4.23 charge, you will pay 4.25. Enjoy your visit. Coming to Alberta?

Replies: Switch Blayde awnlee jawking

Switch Blayde 🚫

@Rodeodoc

Coming to Alberta?

Thanks. Already home. Landed in Vancouver. Took the scenic train through the Canadian Rockies. Then a chartered bus to continue on. Slept in several places like Lake Louise and Banff. And then took a shuttle to Calgary where I flew out.

Used my Toonie to pay my last hotel bill (used a credit card for everything). I kept the nickel, though. It's a 1949 with King George on it instead of Queen Elizabeth. Couldn't let it go. Not for 5 cents.

Replies: rustyken

rustyken 🚫

@Switch Blayde

Done that trip the opposite direction but from Nova Scotia to Vancouver. It was great!!

awnlee jawking 🚫

@Rodeodoc

I'm late to reply but the coin with the "2" is a Toonie. An all gold coin the same size is a one dollar coin, called a Loonie because the first version had a loon on the front. Thus the $2 became a Toonie because we Canadians love our rhymes.

Presumably a $4 coin is called a phoney ;-)

AJ

Replies: richardshagrin Paladin_HGWT

richardshagrin 🚫

@awnlee jawking

phoney

You can make a telephone call with a phoney.

Replies: Dominions Son awnlee jawking

Dominions Son 🚫

@richardshagrin

You can make a telephone call with a phoney.

You have a mobile in your middle leg joint?

awnlee jawking 🚫

@richardshagrin

You can make a telephone call with a phoney.

They would have called them fourneys, only that would have made the manufacturing process 'fourneycation'.

AJ

Paladin_HGWT 🚫

@awnlee jawking

Remember when exchanging Canadian currency for Real Money, Canada uses the Metric system. So, take the Canadian denomination, divide into 100ths, subtract 50% then add 40.

Some economists believe that due to inflation, by 2023, the exchange rate will change to 5 Canadian Muskrat Pelts for 1 US Buck, that is one tanned hide of a full grown Male Deer.

Reply to topic

Forum: Author Hangout

Canadian currency

WARNING! ADULT CONTENT...