Businesses all over the country are facing a new problem caused by the coronavirus pandemic: a lack of coins.
According to an informational article published by Regions Bank, the pandemic has significantly upset the normal circulation of coins. Along with coin deposits from banks to the Federal Reserve declining, the U.S. Mint’s production of coins has decreased due to safety measures put in place for employees.
Austin Meeks, assistant manager of Captain D’s in Greenwood, said the recent shortage has been less than ideal.
Meeks said the restaurant is used to making $800 to $900 weekly change runs, but now the banks are limiting how much they can give out, creating the possibilities for some awkward situations.
“When we run out of change, we have nothing to give to the customers,” Meeks said. “That means we’re going to be short — or they’re going to be short.”
And that restaurant is not the only place feeling the effects of the coin shortage.
Marquellus Davenport, a shift supervisor at CVS on Park Avenue, said this new issue is causing some strange new situations for the store.
“We have a system in place where we ask our customers if they would like to round up to the nearest dollar amount,” Davenport said. “When we actually go to the bank to get change, we have gotten a big hit as far as getting coins back. We receive more dollars back than actual coins.”
One thing Davenport said has made the shortage a little easier is the use of paperless transactions. “Over 50% (of customers) actually buy with their debit cards, which makes it a whole lot easier for us,” he said.
Bank of Commerce planned for this after observing trends in the coin circulation.
“When Bank of Commerce first heard of the possible shortage, we kept some additional coin on hand to avoid local shortage or disruption in our daily business,” said Bryan Thornhill, president and CEO.
Thornhill also said he expects the situation to be handled properly and is optimistic that a solution will be devised in the near future. “According to The Federal Reserve, they are aiming to distribute coin in a fair and equitable manner throughout this situation, to be reevaluated next week, and we hope it will be resolved soon,” he said.
Gordon Fellows, president and CEO of the Mississippi Bankers Association, said it is important to remember that this is a nationwide problem.
“It is a circulation issue,” he said. “It is not reflective on how much money we have in the country. We have plenty of money. The coins just aren’t circulating around the country like they normally would because commerce has been changed.”
Fellows also mentioned that due to law of supply and demand, the coin shortage will need time to even out and adjust.
“It’s weird; it’s kind of the new toilet paper,” Fellows said, referencing another shortage from early in the pandemic. “Over time, the supply chain caught up, and we’ve all got toilet paper now. It will catch back up on the coins; it’s just going to take a little time.”
Chris Brasher, head of bank operations and transformation for Regions Bank, said this is a great time for people to discover small coin “fortunes” that they may have collected, all while helping others.
Brasher noted that a lot of customers have been surprised at the amount of money they had lying around after they saw how much they cashed in. Also, he said, reintroducing those coins into circulation will help more local businesses and other consumers get the coins they need until the shortage is resolved.
“This year has brought a lot of unique challenges, and the coin shortage is one that a lot of consumers didn’t expect,” said Brasher. “This is, indeed, a temporary situation, but it’s also a great time for households that have a bunch of quarters, nickels, dimes and pennies saved up to go ahead and cash in on what they’ve been saving.”
•Contact Adam Bakst at 581-7233 or abakst@gwcommonwealth.com. Twitter: @AdamBakst_GWCW
