An Introduction To New Zealand Decimal Coins 1967 - 2020

To summarise

NEW ZEALAND CIRCULATION COINS

1. All 1c, 2c, 5c and the old 10c, 20c and 50c have been demonitised and can only be redeemed at the Reserve Bank.

2. The small size 10c, 20c, 50c are all legal tender back to 2006 and these are all minted in Canada by the Royal Canadian Mint.

3. The $1 and $2 coins are all legal tender back to 1990 and these are minted at The Royal Mint Llantrisant Wales.

4. Thanks to redlock, I now know that a full set of coins was minted in 2019 and 2020 and these await release except 2019 dated $1 and $2 coins.

5. There are currently around 1 billion coins in circulation including 360 million 10 cent coins, 287 million 20 cent coins, 153 million 50 cent coins, 135 million dollars and 121 million 2 dollars. About 70 million are 2019 and 2020 coins not released yet and we can assume some 20% of the coins are missing or not in circulation (Like the 73 examples in my coin collection and 38 coins in my change jar)

Great thread, Princetane!

I was especially interested to read about the 1997 $2 coin. I got one in change during my visit to NZ in 1999 and at first wondered if it was a forgery, as it looked slightly different from the others! On subsequent visits I've never found another 1997 $2.

Great thread, Princetane. Thanks for the effort!

It's a very interesting and informative and a highly enjoyable read (just like the pre-decimal thread).

I agree, you guys really love those Greenbacks don't you?

Maybe its the marketing and shape of all the attempts at dollars, these cheap muck metal things. Perhaps a bimetallic thing with an eagle or a polygonal coin could appeal more.

Many do, yes. I prefer the coin.


The truth is, we just need to stop printing the one dollar note and the one dollar coins will take over. It is that simple. Uglier coins have circulated with less effort.


This is true. One argument we use to support the coin is that the two dollar note will circulate more, that is, if people are really afraid of "weighing down their pockets" with dollar coins. They only need one coin if they use two dollar notes.

DOLLARS 1967 - 1990


Mintage figures are in addition to sets and are loose coins
Some years like 1970, 1974, 1981, 1983 and 1986 had a second coin issued which did not appear in the sets.
1989 had 4 single $1 coins each showing a sport.

1967, Coat of arms - Inscribed edge 200k standard, rest in sets
No loose Proof dollars until 1970 Cook Islands

1968, No $1 coin issued

1969, Cook Bicentenary Map of New Zealand - 400k loose

1970, Mt. Cook (Royal Visit), 285k

1970, Cook Islands (This was before Cook Islands got their own coins in 1972) This dollar is more scarce and did not appear in 1970 dated sets. - 25,070 Standard, 5030 Proof (Polished coins)

- This is how Uncirculated "Loose" dollars appeared until 1988, in 1989 a plastic vinyl wallet was used.

From now Unc = Standard coin in case like above,
Pol = Polished coin that is cupronickel
Prf = Sterling silver proof coin

1971 - Coat of arms, 30k Unc, 5k Pol
1972 - Coat of arms, 27k Unc, 3k Pol
1973 - Coat of arms, 22k Unc, 8k Pol
1974 - Commonwealth Games, 500k Unc, 10k Prf,
1974 - NZ Day (Scarce polished, not in sets) 50k UNC, 5k Pol

The early 1970s saw the novelty of big dollars and sets die off and only in 1974 with the Commonwealth games did it increase, the less known NZ Day coin (A failed experiment by Norman Kirk to end Maori animosity on Waitangi day) is scarce in polished condition.





A 1972 Dollar coin.

1975, Coat of arms 20k UNC, 10k Pol
1976, Coat of arms 20k UNC, 11k Pol
1977, Waitangi 70k UNC, 15k Prf (First year of Sterling silver Proof dollars)





The 1977 dollar celebrated Waitangi and Silver Jubilee!

I love the dollars! I can see some examples joining my collection some day.

Starting in 1984 mintages began to decline as inflation and the costs of the coins got higher. Also silver prices dropped to historical lows of about $3 per ounce.

1984 - Black Robin, 40k Unc, 15k Proof

1985 - Black Stilt, 40k Unc, 13.5k Proof
Coins of these 2 years were minted in Australia and the Obverse portraits have different numbering to those on circulation coins.


1984 and 1985 Uncirculated sets with dollars in middle

1986 - Kakapo (Parrot), 35k UNC, 10.5k Proof

1986 - Royal Visit, 40k UNC, 12k Proof (The second coin was not featured in sets, this was the visit the Queen got egged by a Maori activist)

1987 - National Parks Centenary, 35k UNC, 10.5k Proof
The year of the stock market crash and NZ Post being privatised. In 1990 they would take over marketing of the collectors coins.

1988 - Yellow Eyed Penguin (Hoiho), 45k UNC, 10k Proof
The last year of the Plastic wallet and Plastic box for uncirculated coins.


A 1989 collectors set UNC, with new cardboard wallet.

1989 - Commonwealth Games, 4 Coins issued including Runner, Gymnast, Swimmer and Weightlifter each 35k UNC in a plastic vinyl flip wallet with a card. 8,600 sets of 4 coins in a Proof set case. Also 6.3k of the $1 Runner separate. UNC sets and Proof sets could have any of the 4 coins as the $1.

This was the beginning of mass commercialism by having 4 separate $1 coins each with a different image and making the collector buy them loose or in the proof set in addition to a standard Uncirculated or Proof set. Some people may have even bought 4 copies of each set to get one with each different $1 coin!

1990 - 150th anniversary, Special dollar - 40k UNC and 7k Proof.

In later 1990, the $1 coin was designed for circulation and these annual commemorative large dollars became $5 starting with the Anazac joint issue with Australia.

In 2003 the large size dollar was revived for Lord of the Rings promotional crud.

After 1990, The Reserve bank became more commercial and went beyond just annual sets of 1 special coin and the usual circulation coins in Uncirculated and Proof condition (Proof sets only had a silver $1 coin, the other coins were just polished base metal).

The 1990s saw the arrival of gimmicks like bimetallic coins, silver bullion sets, one off $5 coins like Pride in New Zealand and cities, the wallpaper factor went up more in the 2000s with tacky cash ins like Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit, Maori Matariki coins and World War One commems.

I am not listing this stuff as it does not interest me.

I will briefly mention Uncirculated and Proof sets with the standard coins and annual $1 piece though.