U.S. Mint

A penny, on its face, is worth one cent. But melted down for the copper it contains, it could be worth quite a bit more. So why not mine our piggy banks for metal?

According to the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office, if America gets rid of its $1 bill and replaces it with a dollar coin, the U.S. will save $5.5 billion on printing costs over the next 30 years. That's a whole lot of dollars.

Everyone now knows the federal government is about to run up against its limit for borrowing money, but everyone also knows that governments can -- and do -- just print the stuff. Washington owns the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. Could the way to sidestep this looming crisis be just making more money?

Two New York lawmakers say that a coin being marketed as a "tribute" to 9-11 is a scam and an "all-time low" for the for-profit private company making the coins. Senator Charles Schumer and U.S. Rep. Jerrold Nadler have complained to both the Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Mint about the...

The U.S. mint will launch a $1 coin Thursday commemorating President James Buchanan, the 15th president of the United States. The coin will show Buchanan's portrait with the inscription "JAMES BUCHANAN, IN GOD WE TRUST, 15TH PRESIDENT" and "1857-1861", the U.S. Mint said in a statement. The...

We've got another video exclusive on WalletPop.com today. I'm taking you where the general public is not allowed to go: onto the manufacturing floor of the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia, where the newest 25-cent piece, the America the Beautiful Yosemite quarter, is being produced. It comes out on July...

Did you know that the new coins in your pocket are signed by the original artists who designed them? I went to the United States mint in Philadelphia to meet some of the faces who create the money we all spend every day. I also found out how our national coin-making process has moved into the...

The U.S. Mint is facing a big problem with small change: Some coins cost more to make than they're actually worth. It costs 1.6 cents to make a penny, as much as nine cents to make a nickel, and with billions of coins pressed every year, that really adds up.

Earlier this week, NPR reported that the U.S. Mint will make 3 billion coins in 2009, as opposed to the 10 billion it created in 2008. It's the smallest amount in 50 years, the flagging retail economy is the reason.That information in itself is interesting, but as it turns out, the U.S. Mint may be...

The U.S. Mint is officially the P.T. Barnum of currency. It's addicted to showmanship. Yesterday, in a heartwarmingly goofy ceremony at Washington DC's Lincoln Memorial, an actor dressed as Abe unveiled its four new designs for the penny, all of which will be released in 2009 to commemorate the...