There is a shortage of coins!
The problem in the use of coins, which small merchants and banks have been experiencing for about a year, has deepened.
Merchants from various branches said: “We went to the bank, it’s not there either. While he says: “We are looking for coins, we are going around” or hangs up the message “Please make your card payments because we are having trouble getting coins”; On the other hand, banks have been trying to get by for months with the coins they receive from the PTT in large quantities.
Speaking to Sozcu.com.tr, Food Retailers Association board member Erdal Tüfekçi said that this problem has peaked in Istanbul and there has been an increase in demand for coins collected by the bakery markets.
The president of the Istanbul Chamber of Bakers, Erdoğan Çetin, gave an assessment to sozcu.com.tr: “This problem, which has been going on for 5-6 months, has increased even more. We didn’t find it either, we collect it from citizens, ”he said.
Image taken yesterday at a monopoly dealer (Source: Özgür Aybaş, President of the Turkish Monopoly Dealers Platform)
MORE THAN THE VALUE OF THE COST OF PRODUCTION
When the prices of copper, zinc, and nickel used in the production of coins increased, the costs exceeded the value of money; There was a shortage of coins in the market.
According to the data of the Casa de la Moneda, the cost of 1 TL, which was 8.2 grams in these months of last year, reached 1.3 TL; The cost of 50 cents of 6.8 grams was 1.1 TL.
When it came to the last months of 2022, several calculations came to the agenda and it was stated that the production cost of 1 TL exceeded 3 TL, a statement came from the Mint on this issue and it was stated that this calculation was not It was right. .
Although there is no updated data on both the cost of the coins and the number of coins in circulation in the market, it is known that the cost of production has increased further and this has deepened the shortage of coins in the market.
As a solution to this problem, in April 2023, the Mint changed the weight of the coins due to increased costs; First of all, the lighter 1 TL and 50 kuruş were launched.
However, at this point, it is claimed that these steps have not relieved the market.
TESK: PRICES RISE, DEMAND FOR BORROWED MONEY DECREASES, STILL CAN’T FIND IT
According to the president of the Confederation of Turkish Tradesmen and Craftsmen (TESK), Bendevi Palandöken, who spoke to sozcu.com.tr on the subject, “prices have risen so much that the currency has become less used, but even though you need less, it’s still a hard coin to find.
Reporting that there was a serious contraction, especially by 50 kuruş and 1 lira, Palandöken stated that grocery stores and markets experienced less of this problem due to the increase in card payments in retail purchases, and that one of the most suffered were the minibus drivers.
CASE ‘COLLECTED FROM THE MARKET’
On the other hand, the news sources we asked about the coin shortage said that after the coins’ weight was reduced in April, the Central Bank tried to collect the old coins in the market to change their weight.
One retailer said: “Especially after the change in the 1TL weight, the problem increased. We are hearing that coins prior to this change were taken off the market and reintroduced to the market after their weight was reduced.”
The small merchants, for their part, claimed the solution to this problem by issuing new coins to the market, which had previously delivered another product to the customer instead of the missing coin, but that this was no longer possible due to the price level.