WASHINGTON–The economic lockdown from the coronavirus pandemic has had another effect many hadn’t counted upon: many financial institutions have been running short of coins.
The Federal Reserve announced in a notice that coin circulation has been disrupted by the pandemic, and the U.S. Mint’s production of coin also decreased because of measures put in place to protect its employees. The result: coin orders from financial institutions have increased as states reopen, leading to a decrease in the inventory of coins.
“What’s happened is that with the partial closure of the economy, the flow of coins through the economy, it has gotten all — it’s kind of stopped,” Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome H. Powell said during congressional testimony this week, adding that many of the places where people exchange their quarters and pennies for cash and stores have closed, disrupting the normal flow. “We’ve been aware of it, we’re working with the Mint to increase supply, we’re working with the reserve banks to get the supply to where it needs to be.”
One Rep’s Worry
One member of Congress, Rep. John Rose (R-TN), said he had been told by a bank in his district that it had been informed by the Fed the bank would receive only a “small portion” of its weekly coinage order.
“I know we don’t want to wake up to headlines in the near future, such as: ‘Banks out of money,’” Rose said.
Responded Powell, “It’s something we’ve been working on,” Mr. Powell said. “We believe it’s just temporary.”