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8.8(4)
When a limited edition programme is promoted by the Royal Mint, the advertisements specify the maximum number of coins that will
be minted. Should demand not reach this figure the lower number is adopted. On issues not described as limited no figures are quoted
and either demand is met in full or a suitable cut-off number is
introduced. Although the enforcement of a predetermined limit is
welcomed by numismatists, the survey shows that in general the cash
benefits for the client are substantially poorer than where the
subscription method is used (see Section 8.11). Programmes promoted
by the Royal Mint (and Spinks) are invariably much smaller than those
of the US companies and result in a lower income from royalties.
Distribution
8.9
Most coins are sold by mail order through either established
mailing lists or advertisements in the numismatic Press. The
exclusive right to promote and sell the coins internationally is given
by the contract to the promotional company except that, provided the offer is in all respects the same as that of the promotional company, the issuing authority may retain the right to handle local sales to
banks, dealers and (more rarely) the general public (as in Bermuda,
Belize and the Solomon Islands). Paramount, World Coin and Franklin
also claim to have an extensive bank retail network in the US for
counter sales. Italcambio reckon on 50,000 such outlets in Europe.
It is not known how these sales can be said to comply with the demands
of subscription basis limits nor whether they result in the adequate enforcement of customers' quotas. In the present buoyant state of
the market some companies also conduct "after-market" programmes where coins are bought back from the original purchaser and resold at a
premium above the initial offering price.
Volume of Issues
8.10(1) For the most part, replies to the questionnaire provided adequate information on the total number of coins issued each year.
Although, however, some inconsistencies in the figures could not be
resolved, the discrepancies noted were not considered large enough to
warrant further examination.
8.10 (2) By end-1972, of those territories covered by the survey,
only three (Bermuda, the Cayman Islands and Gibraltar) had issued
numismatic coins, with a total face value at that date of US$7.63 mn.
Bermuda's first issue (1970) had been to mark the introduction of
decimal currency, and this was followed in 1972 by the Queen's Silver