Last of the Maltese coins

The death knell of Maltese coins was sounded on Monday and €25.91 million worth now remain forever unredeemed into legal tender.

It was the last day when Maltese lira, cent and mil coins could be exchanged into euro at the Central Bank and about 4,000 people who had waited till the last minute showed up to exchange the old currency.

Several counters were open but that did not prevent a one- to-two-hour long wait to be served. A few gave up and walked away but most held on to the promise of some easy cash at the end of the line.

The amounts presented at the bank’s counters varied from a few cents for the smallest transactions recorded – sometimes counted in mils – to larger ones exceeding Lm1,000 in value in tens of thousands of coins.

The main reason why so many coins have not been returned is not known, however it is believed that a large proportion was exported by tourists visiting Malta over the years.

The returned coins, am-ounting to about 94 million pieces and weighing some 400 tonnes, will be sold to specialised companies that will recycle the metal content.

Banknotes can be exchanged at its the Central Bank annexe at St James’s Counterguard, Valletta until January 31, 2018.