The director of the U.S. Mint on Monday asked Americans to help combat widespread currency shortages by using exact change for purchases and exchanging coins for cash at banks and kiosks.
In a video posted on Twitter on Monday, U.S. Mint Director David Ryder called for actions that would improve a distribution in coin circulation caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
The sharp decline in economic activity and shift to cashless payment options amid the pandemic has hampered the slow circulation of coins by U.S. companies. Grocery stores and retailers in the US have warned customers about shortages and have asked them to pay either in exact change or with credit cards to keep a meager supply of coins available.
“I want to assure you that the men and women of the Mint workers work as hard as they can to get newly produced coins into the economy,” Ryder said. “At the moment, coins are not circulating as fast through the economy as before the COVID-19 pandemic, which means that coins are sometimes not readily available where needed. This is not a coin supply problem. This is a circulatory problem and I’m here to ask for your help. ”
The national currency shortage can only be a nuisance as a novelty for Americans with access to credit cards and financial flexibility. But the shortage of coins can pose serious challenges for those with only cash payment options and low-income individuals without the money to smooth out the differences.
Nearly 7 percent of Americans do not have bank accounts, according to a 2017 survey conducted by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., and there are still roughly 12 million Americans who lost their jobs due to the pandemic that has not yet returned. are at work, according to the July job report released by the Labor Department earlier this month.
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