There are mistakes that cost more than others. This one will cost between 700,000 and 1.2 million euros. According to La Lettre, the Monnaie de Paris had decided to strike new 10, 20, and 50 cent coins with a completely new design. Problem: this design was ultimately not approved by the European Commission. The Monnaie de Paris found itself with 27 million unusable coins.
Still according to the newspaper, Marc Schwartz, the general director of the public establishment, wanted to present these new coins to Bruno le Maire on December 7th, during his visit to the headquarters of the Monnaie de Paris on Quai de Conti. The workers had therefore spared no effort to deliver the necessary stock on time. Four days in a row, tirelessly, to make the institution shine.
But Mark Shwartz disregarded one detail: the seven-day regulatory deadline from the Directorate General for Economic and Financial Affairs of the European Commission (ECFIN) to validate the circulation of new currencies. It was on December 1st, just a few days before the presentation to the minister, that the terrible news came: the new design was rejected by Europe, on the grounds that it would make the stars on the face, symbolizing the European continent, less visible.
The responsibility of the French state? The Monnaie de Paris had to shell out up to 1.2 million euros to destroy the millions of coins produced and reissue 27 million.
Contacted by La Lettre, the head of the Monnaie de Paris mentioned an independent delay beyond his control, shifting the responsibility to the “French State”. Bruno Le Maire has initiated an evaluation to shed light on this story. In fact, these millions of coins represent 4% of the annual production of the Monnaie de Paris. Marc Schwartz has already planned to organize an event to present the new coins, this time approved by the European Commission, in the presence of the Minister of Finance.
