anonym hat geschrieben:Mr. xxx
Counselor, Economic and Financial Affairs Section
Delegation of the European Union to the United States of America
2175 K Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20037
(202) 862-9500 x9563
Dear Mr. xxx:
I am writing to you as a coin collector whose collection of 2€ Commemorative Coins is complete with over 340 coins in the hope that you can direct me, as an American, where I can file a formal complaint against the Bank of Slovakia regarding its "private" release of the Proof version of Slovakia's 2013 €2 commemorative coin.
In case you are not aware, since Greece released the first 2€ commemorative coin to celebrate the Athens Olympics, the 17 countries that have adopted the Euro as their currency along with 3 "microstates" (the Vatican, Monaco and San Marino) have all released 2€ commemorative coins. As they are new to the Eurozone this year, Latvia and the "microstate" Andorra have yet to issue any 2€ commemorative coin.
For more information on the European Union 2€ commemorative coin program, please visit:
http://ec.europa.eu/economy_finance/eur ... dex_en.htm
Most coins are issued in "Uncirculated" versions (which are the kind of coins that you might find when you obtain a "brand new" roll from a bank) and "Proof" versions (which are very shiny coins that are specially struck several times by the Mint and produces a mirror-like finish). Some countries release their Uncirculated coins in rolls of 25 coins and some release their Uncirculated coins in special cardboard packaging. Every Proof coin (because of the special mintage process) are always released in plastic capsules inside a luxurious presentation case. The following picture shows the difference between a Proof coin (on the left) and an Uncirculated coin (on the right):
In general, Uncirculated coins are worth far less than Proof coins, both when purchased directly from the Mint or Bank, and also later, on the secondary market when the coins are "sold out" from Mint or Bank. The reason for this is usually that countries release many more Uncirculated coins than Proof coins. As an example, the 2008 version of the Luxembourg 2€ commemorative coin had a mintage of 1,037,500 Uncirculated coins (with a value today on the secondary market of about 5€), but only 5,000 Proof coins (with a value today on the secondary market of about 100€) ,
The reason for my email today is to launch an investigation into the National Bank of Slovakia's release of the Proof version of the 2013 Slovakia 2€ commemorative coin honoring St. Constantine and St. Methodius. These coins were never released by the National Bank of Slovakia on the "open market," but were instead "emitted only for the needs of the National Bank of Slovakia" (according to the National Bank of Slovakia's response to my email concerning the release of the Proof version of this coin). According to the National Bank of Slovakia, 989,700 coins were minted in Uncirculated quality and 10,300 coins were minted in Proof quality.
The result of this "private" release was that very few of these Proof coins have entered the public secondary market, and where available, the coins are selling for €349,00 - see:
http://www.ebay.de/itm/2-Euro-Gedenkmun ... 485fea2e19
The Uncirculated version of this coin is selling for a mere €4,50 - see:
http://www.ebay.de/itm/2-Euro-Slowakei- ... 8057&rt=nc
I believe that the National Bank of Slovakia's "private" issue of a 2€ commemorative coin, as a member country of the European Union, is unfair to coin collectors who have no chance to obtain this coin directly from the Government at a reasonable price.
I therefore urge the European Union to investigate the National Bank of Slovakia's "private" release of the the 2013 Slovakia 2€ commemorative coin honoring St. Constantine and St. Methodius. In undertaking this investigation, I urge the investigators to ask the following questions:
1. What exactly does "emitted only for the needs of the National Bank of Slovakia" mean?
2. Who were the individuals who received these coins? (were they National Bank of Slovakia officers, VIPs or high-ranking government officials?)
3. How did some of these coins end up in the hands of Slovakian coin dealers and why is the price of these coins so high on the secondary market?
4. While the Bank of Slovakia has admitted that 10,300 of the Proof coins were minted, they have yet to answer the question - How many Proof coins were actually released? (the reason for this question is simple, 10,300 is a large number of coins to be minted as Proof coins for a small country such as Slovakia, and the secondary market value of such a coin with 10,300 coins released to the market would not be anything close to €350,00 - for example, the Proof version of the 2006 Belgium €2 commemorative coin with a mintage of only 3,000 coins is just €20,50 - see:
http://www.ebay.de/itm/rare-2006-belgiu ... 19eb29fb9b
I look forward to hearing from you with regard to where I can file my formal request for an investigation.
Thank you for taking the time to read this email.
Mr.XXX
