New 10p Coin Enters Circulation - Will You Spot One?
BBC News reports on the release of a new 10p coin featuring King Charles III and the world's largest grouse, the capercaillie. These coins are entering circulation for the first time in about four years due to sufficient demand.
The Royal Mint has minted and dated these coins in 2023 and 2026, which shoppers and collectors across the UK should start discovering. The coin's reverse side depicts an image of the capercaillie, a species found in a small part of Scotland and threatened with extinction.
This new coin is part of a redesigned suite of coins celebrating King Charles III's love for nature, unveiled in October 2023. Every newly-minted coin from 1p to £2 now features the UK's flora and fauna on its tails side.
Previously, coins bearing the image of Queen Elizabeth II dominated circulation, with new ones only struck in response to demand. Given the high number of existing 10p coins (1.4 billion), this is the first time a new 10p coin has been released since 2018.
A total of 600,000 coins dated 2023 and 6.5 million dated 2026 have been distributed to banks and post offices nationwide. These new coins are highly sought after by numismatists and collectors alike, representing only about 1% of the UK's total coin circulation of 24.1 billion.
The capercaillie design on the tails side is based on an illustration by artist Mike Langman, who has contributed to the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB). The RSPB highlights the rapid decline of the capercaillie population, making it vulnerable to extinction for the second time and listing it on the UK conservation red list.
The Bank of England is also set to introduce banknotes featuring wildlife imagery, replacing historical figures like Sir Winston Churchill. This follows a public vote that received hundreds of thousands of votes from a shortlist of 18 animals, birds, and insects. The final decision is expected in the autumn by Governor Andrew Bailey.