THE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has asked the public to bring out coins they have stored in their piggy banks and deposit these in savings banks as it confirmed an ongoing artificial shortage of coins nationwide.

This problem is being highlighted with the staging of the ‘Fun Run for Coins’ by the BSP Dagupan office at the Narciso Ramos Civic and Sports Center in Lingayen on Oct. 29 where participants of all ages are asked to pay registration fee of P250, with at least P50 of the amount to be paid in coins.

Analyza Dacan, senior research specialist of BSP branch in Dagupan, believes the hoarding of coins gave rise to the artificial shortage of coins as legal tender, and could be checked by bringing out the coins stored in piggy banks or bamboo and even bottle tubes.

BSP has released a total of 21 billion pieces of coins into the market which are enough to put P250 coins in the hands of every 100 million Filipinos today, she said.

Of the 21 billion pieces of coins released, 56 percent of these are 25-centavo coins and below while the other 46 percent comprises P5 and P10 coins.

Dacan called on the Filipinos to love their coins as they love their paper bills, citing the one centavo coin alone actually costs the government 0.94 centavos to make, which is being mutilated used by others to be used as a washer to bolt in things.

“We can actually help the government save a lot as it need not have to mint additional coins anymore if we bring out the coins put in the piggy bank and put these instead in banks,” said Dacan, speaking during the KBP Forum last week.

Clarifying they are not discouraging people or children putting their coins in piggy banks which is one form of saving money, Dacan said what is being discouraged is having to keep the coins too long.

She advised that the saved coins be deposited in banks or exchanged with paper bills after a period so that the coins can be put back in circulation again.

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