INTERNATIONAL

COIN CONFERENCES, FAIRS AND EXPOS

ANA World’s Fair of Money Philadelphia, August 2018

The American Numismatic Association held its annual event in Philadelphia from 14 to 18 August 2018. Mint representatives met with international distributors to build, strengthen and reinvigorate relationships and explore international opportunities. Among the business secured were two joint ventures with the United States Mint, a rare achievement for any minting institution in the world and the first time Australia has ever achieved a joint venture with the US Mint.

Beijing International Coin Show Beijing, November 2018

The 2018 Beijing International Coin Show from 9 to 11 November was an opportunity to collaborate with the Mint’s Australian distributor to promote and sell Mint products in China. Attendance at the Beijing Coin Show helped to raise awareness of Mint’s products and to reinforce the years of attendance and investment by the Mint’s Australian distributor.

World Money Fair Berlin, February 2019

The Mint attended World Money Fair—the first major coin show on the international industry calendar. Mint representatives partnered with established distributors over an eight-day period. More than 60 meetings were held on topics including packaging, technological innovation, sales and custom minting, and helped build and strengthen the Mint’s international relationships.

Singapore International Coin Fair Singapore, March 2019

For the first time, the Mint exhibited at the Singapore International Coin Fair and hosted meetings at the event in March 2019. The Mint released its first special show-specific product in silver, which featured a Merlion privy mark and a limited mintage. The product’s theme and quality was well received by attendees.

INVESTMENT PRODUCTS

Orders from the Mint’s investment coin program increased 100 per cent during the year, netting a further $2.1 million on top of the sale of investment products to the Mint’s major customer PAMP SA in Switzerland.

The Mint pursued a niche approach to investment products in a competitive market characterised by high quality and relatively low volumes. This emerging business line was embraced by international clients and will be a profitable revenue source for the next financial year.

DOMESTIC

CASE STUDY: AUSTRALIA'S DOLLAR DISCOVERY

The Problem

Demand for circulating coin in Australia is slowly diminishing.

The Challenge

How does the Mint encourage and motivate Australians to re-imagine the use and value of their coins?

The Solution

Create a fun and accessible circulating coin program that engages Australian families in collecting, and encourages them to take a closer look at their change.

The Strategy

Entice and incentivise Australians to participate in a national hunt to collect three special $1 coins featuring a unique privy mark (A, U & S) and go in the draw to win a trip to the Mint in Canberra, including the rare opportunity to mint their very own one kilogram pure silver coin.

Approximately 1.5 million coins of each design were released through the banks into general circulation. A specially designed collection folder was made available free to the first 50 000 Australians who registered for the competition.

The competition included a three-tier prize pool:

• Major prize: eight winners, one from each state and territory – two nights’ accommodation at Jamala Wildlife Lodge, return flights to Canberra, VIP tour of the Mint and a one kilogram pure silver coin.
• Second prize: 250 Mint gift vouchers, each worth $150.
• Third prize: 5000 Australia’s Dollar Discovery piggy banks.

The Results

Increase customer database

Target 50 000+ registrations. Result 64 093 registrations.

Exceeded goal by 28 per cent

Generate website visitation

Target 100 000+. Result 294 767 unique views, 152 388 unique users and 3580 click throughs to e-shop.

Exceeded goal by 195 per cent

Reach new audiences

Target 50 000+ new customers. Result 54 478 new customers.

New customers were 70 per cent women between the ages of 35-44 years with 24 per cent living in VIC, 23 per cent in QLD and 15 per cent in NSW.

Exceeded goal by 8.9 per cent

Increase awareness

Target 2 per cent national awareness. Result:

• 3 per cent increase in the number of Australians stating that they collect coins
• 8 per cent increase in the number of Australians stating that they have an interest in collecting coins
• 3 per cent increase in the number of Australians stating that 'coins should be kept for sentimental reasons'
• 6 per cent increase in the number of Australians stating that 'coins are still useful'
• 1 per cent increase in the number of Australians who are aware that the Mint produces collectable coins
• 1 per cent increase in the number of Australians who are aware that the Mint produces circulating coins

Reach a national audience

Target 90 per cent of registrations are from people living outside of the ACT. Result 97 per cent of registrations were from people living outside of the ACT.

• 1525 registrations from NT
• 2171 registrations from ACT
• 4472 registrations from TAS
• 7888 registrations from WA
• 8602 registrations from SA
• 12 119 registrations from QLD
• 13 456 registrations from NSW
• 13 860 registrations from VIC

Customer conversion

Target 3 per cent conversion rate. Result 0.75 per cent conversion rate as follows:

• 5866 people joined Australia's Dollar Discovery Facebook page reaching 592 500 people and achieving 80 613 engagements (likes, shares, comments, etc)
• $4541 revenue generated from EDM campaigns
• $6762 revenue generated from program website
• $11 309 total revenue generated from program

COLLECTABLE COINS

The Mint released two innovative world-first coins, featuring black nickel plating and colour printing on shaped blanks. The first coin to be produced was triangular and celebrated the 45th anniversary of Australian rock band AC/DC. The second was a circular domed coin to mark the 50th anniversary of one of mankind’s greatest endeavours – the 1969 Moon Landing. The Mint also featured braille on coins for the first time to mark the release of the Invictus Games Sydney 2018 coin program.

The Ford and Holden Motorsport Collections continued to be highly sought after amongst collectors and motoring enthusiasts—stock for both collections were exhausted within days of release. The AC/DC 50c coloured coin was also in strong demand and sold out within 48 hours.

Collaborations were also undertaken with Woolworths and News Corp on two significant programs:

• to mark the 60th anniversary of Mr Squiggle, four specially designed coloured $2 coins and a seven coin collection were distributed through Woolworths stores, and
• 15 specially designed coins were released to round off News Corps’ four-year coverage of the Centenary of WWI in the lead up to Remembrance Day 2018.

The 2014–2018 Anzac Centenary coin program ended with coloured circulating and numismatic coins released in time for Remembrance Day. Other commemorative circulating coin programs included:

• the Invictus Games Sydney 2018
• Repatriation Centenary, and
• International Year of Indigenous Languages, which was produced in partnership with the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS).

A new effigy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was unveiled on select collector and circulating coins. This was an adaptation of a portrait designed by Royal Mint engraver Jody Clark and replaced the effigy by Ian Rank-Broadley which was introduced in 1999. This was the sixth effigy of the Queen to appear on Australian coins.

ENGAGEMENT: COIN LAUNCH & CAMPAIGN HIGHLIGHTS

The Ford vs Holden Reverendum

The Mint created 12 coins to commemorate Ford and Holden’s most iconic race cars, and then held a Reverendum to decide the greatest Ford and Holden car of all time:

• over 30 000 visits to the Reverendum site were recorded
• close to 8000 votes were received from Ford and Holden fans, and
• around 3000 of each coin were sold in the first month they were released

Fans voted the 1971 Ford XY Falcon GT-HO Phase III and the 1979 Holden LX Torana A9X as the greatest Ford and Holden cars respectively.

AC/DC Coins 45h Anniversary

To celebrate the 45th anniversary of Australian rockers AC/DC, the Mint released its first ever nickel plated coin. It was not only black but its detailed design was minted on a triangular blank to resemble a guitar pick. In the spirit of AC/DC and the band’s hit single Thunderstruck, the Mint struck ten of its 45th Anniversary of AC/DC 50c Uncirculated Coins with a bolt of man-made lightning. These were randomly sent to ten customers who had ordered the coin.

The initiative:

• resulted in the uncirculated coin selling out within 48 hours
• achieved $12 million dollars in national and international earned media, and
• attracted more than 500 000 website visits.

Remembrance Day – Armistice Centenary $2 coins

A coloured depiction of a poppy and a graphic representation of 11.11.11 adorned the Centenary of Armistice Remembrance Day $2 Circulating and Uncirculated coins, marking 100 years since the guns fell silent in Europe. These commemorative coins were launched at the Australian War Memorial poppies display in Canberra and sold out within a week of release. The circulating coins reached over two million Australians.

International Year of Indigenous Languages

A 50c circulating and uncirculated coin was produced to celebrate Australia’s unique and diverse Indigenous languages. The coin incorporated 14 translations for the word ‘coin’ from some of the many Indigenous languages in Australia. It was unveiled in Adelaide by the Mint in conjunction with the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS) and the Sydney Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Research Network at the University of Sydney. It was popular among non-coin collectors and close to 20 000 of the uncirculated coins sold.

Echoes of Australian Fauna Series

Previewed at the World Money Fair 2019 in Berlin, these black nickel and selective gold plated coins featured native Australian animals – the Tasmanian tiger, lesser bilby and the night parrot. The coins showcased the Mint’s excellence in manufacturing and its expertise in creating evocative and engaging designs. The black nickel accentuated the mysterious and primordial nature of the landscape, while the gold plate – alternating with black nickel – provided a beautiful contrast and illuminated the unique and elusive creatures.

Fifty years of the 50 cent coin

In 2019 the Mint commemorated the 50th anniversary of Australia’s most distinctive decimal coin—the 50 cent piece. The most recognisable for its unusual shape, it’s the coin that launched many collectors into the world of coin collecting. To celebrate the milestone, the Mint released a limited edition 50c uncirculated five coin set with a gold plated 50c coin for the 50th anniversary of the dodecagon.

Apollo 11 Moon Landing – 50th anniversary coins

The Mint produced the world’s first dome-shaped coloured nickel plated coin, a domed gold coin and a coloured silver domed coin as part of a set to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon Landing. The set was launched with help from Parkes radio telescope electrician and driver, Ben Lam, and Honeysuckle Creek Tracking Station Deputy Station Director, Mike Dinn. Over 79 positive media stories were generated about the coin set, equivalent to over $1.9 million in advertising space.

OUTREACH PROGRAM

The Mint’s outreach program contributed more than $1 357 000 in revenue.

The Mint implemented an extensive program of engagements during the year and was able to visit every state and territory in Australia.

The Rascals and Ratbags Roadshow travelled across Victoria, New South Wales, the Northern Territory, Queensland and Western Australia. This enabled the Mint’s ‘Convict’ and other collectable coin products to be purchased, and for other circulating coins to be swapped in regional towns.

In 2019 the Mint travelled to the following sites and events around Australia:

Summernats Event Canberra – January 2019

The Mint reached out to collectors at the annual Summernats event in Canberra to mark the release of the Holden and Ford Motorsport Collections.

Money Expo Perth – March 2019

From Canberra to Perth, the Mint attended Money Expo.

Coin Swaps Canberra, Adelaide, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane – April 2019

Coin swaps were undertaken in Canberra, Adelaide, Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane to commemorate the Repatriation Centenary.

Royal Easter Show Sydney – April 2019

The Mint headed to the Sydney Royal Easter show with the ‘S’ counterstamp and samples of all the new 2019 coins.

Money Expo Sydney, Brisbane – April 2019

The Mint travelled from Sydney to Brisbane to attend the Money Expo with the ‘B’ counterstamp and event-specific collectables.

Roadshow Australia (first three stages) – May to June 2019

The Mint completed the first three stages of the Mint’s The Bold, the Bad and The Ugly Roadshow to showcase the Bushrangers product suite, counterstamps and other coin products across the country.

BUSINESS SERVICES AND PARTNERSHIPS

Custom and Corporate Minting

Demand for custom minted and corporate products continued strongly in 2018–19 and built on the success of previous years. A notable achievement in 2018–19 included a further diversification into precious metals investment products.

PAMP SA

A total of 9175 investment coins were custom-minted during the year for PAMP S.A. These ranged in size and were designed for two investment programs—the 2019 Kangaroo Investment Coins and 2019 PAMP Year of the Pig Investment Coins.

Woolworths

The Mint’s partnership with Woolworths continued to build on the successes of 2017–18. Coins and coin sets were sold through Woolworths supermarkets and the Mint’s own sales channels.

In February 2019 Woolworths distributed around eight million coloured $2 coins commemorating the 60th anniversary of the classic Australian television series Mr Squiggle. The program was supported by a collectible coin set featuring the $2 coloured coins and two specially designed $1 coins along with a new 1 cent coin design featuring the moon.

Investment Programs

The Mint’s investment coin program orders increased 100 per cent in 2018–19, bringing in a further $2.1 million dollars on top of the sale of investment products to PAMP SA in Switzerland.

The Mint pursued a niche approach to investment products characterised by high quality and relatively low volumes on a custom minting basis, and carved out a distinctive position in a competitive market. This emerging business line has been embraced by international clients and a profitable revenue source has been established for next financial year.

New Zealand Post

The Mint continued to produce commemorative coins for New Zealand Post. This included work with the United Kingdom’s Royal Mint on New Zealand’s three coin commemorative set for the Remembrance Day Armistice Centenary. Colour printed commemorative coins were also produced by the Mint on the same theme. These were sold individually by New Zealand Post.

Medals and Medallions

The Mint was the official manufacturer of medals for the Invictus Games Sydney 2018 in October 2018, and produced:

• 285 copper, gold plated medals for first place
• 285 copper, silver plated medals for second place, and
• 285 copper, antique medals for third place.

The Mint also produced two of each first, second and third place exhibition medallions for the games.

In 2018–19 the Mint received a further 24 medallion orders and provided engraving services to an additional 16 clients. This was a 14 per cent increase in orders from 2017–18.

Foreign Effigy Program

The Mint’s Foreign Effigy Program— now in its fourth year—manufactures coins on the legal tender of some Pacific Island countries. In 2018–19, 40 programs were facilitated for clients in Switzerland, the Czech Republic and China. This was an increase of a 66.6 per cent compared to the previous financial year.

PARTNERSHIPS AND LICENSED PROGRAMS

EMK

The Mint continued its strong relationship with EMK during 2018–19 completing one successful coin program. The Earth and Beyond Series was completed with the release of the Moon Landing coin in September 2018 and the Sun coin in February 2019. In a world first, this series featured colour-printing on the convex surface of the coin. The final two coins in the series were sold out within a week of their release.

World Money Fair

The Mint collaborated with World Money Fair GmbH to release two official products at the Berlin World Money Fair in February 2019—an uncirculated six coin set and a special $1 uncirculated coin featuring a privy mark of Germany’s famous pretzel. Both products were sold out at the fair.

Beijing International Coin Exposition (BICE)

The Mint collaborated with the Beijing International Coin Exposition for the first time during the year, and released an official coin featuring Australia’s famous $1 ‘mob of roos’ coin design along with a specially designed privy mark of China’s iconic panda. The product sold out at the event.

News Corp Australia

The Mint partnered with News Corp Australia to produce a collection of 15 coins marking the Armistice Centenary on 11 November 2018. Each coin design was inspired by the 15 values enshrined in the stained glass windows of the Hall of Memory at the Australian War Memorial.

Armistice Centenary Set

A partnership with The Royal Mint in the United Kingdom and the New Zealand Post resulted in a collaboration to mark the Armistice Centenary in November 2018 with a three coin silver set. Each party contributed a coin to the program and sold the sets in their own markets. The product was sold out in all three markets.

MDM

The Mint produced a custom commemorative coin marking the ICC Cricket World Cup in 2019 for MDM, a German based coin dealer. The Mint also produced the 2019 $1 Silver F15 Privy Mark Frosted Uncirculated Coin—Kangaroo Series for MDM. Fabulous 15 is an annual coin set that contains iconic or wellknown coins from national mints around the world. Each coin bares the ‘F15’ Privy Mark.

US Mint

The Mint partnered with the US Mint for the first time in history to release a joint coin program commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon Landing. Exclusively distributed by the Mint, the two coin set featured a silver proof domed coin produced by the Mint and a proof clad half dollar domed coin produced by the US Mint. The set celebrated the historic ties between the two nations.

In addition, the following licensed programs were delivered:

• The centenary of both Snugglepot and Cuddlepie, and the Magic Pudding was marked in 2018. The Mint released a two coin set to mark the anniversaries and celebrate these Australian icons.
• The Mint released an uncirculated and proof coin to mark the 45th anniversary of AC/DC.
• Australian Holden and Ford Motorsports cars featured in two new limited edition coin collector sets. The sets contained six coloured 50 cent coins and one special 50 cent commemorative coin housed in a collectible tin.
• The Mint supported the Invictus Foundation with a special circulating coin and two commemorative coins to mark the Invictus Games Sydney 2018.