NZ's first coloured coin sparks overseas interest

COLOURED COIN: A close-up of the 50c coin. The Reserve Bank has minted a million of them. 240215WCDSCOI01

In the year the nation celebrates the centennial of the Anzac landings at Gallipoli, a specially minted 50-cent coin has been released.

Apart from the significance of the anniversary, the coin is the country's first coloured coin and while it will be legal tender in this country it has created huge interest overseas.

It was launched this month and became available for public pre-orders on Monday. They will then be available for purchase in PostShops and Kiwibank branches nationwide from March 23.

The NZ Post Collectables and Solutions Centre in Wanganui is the outlet handling those initial orders, nationally and to offshore buyers.

Ivan Weal, the centre manager, said the Reserve Bank had minted one million of the commemorative coins which would find their way into general circulation.

And Mr Weal said since that launch at Government House on February 10, the centre's website had been "going ballistic".

"We've had more than 150,000 visits since the coin was launched and a lot of that inquiry has come from overseas collectors," he said.

At least 30 per cent of the centre's business in stamps and coins involves overseas customers and, so far, more than 100,000 coins have been pre-ordered. People can order either one 50c coin or one roll of 20 coins.

The coin features a New Zealand and Australian soldier back to back, heads bowed in remembrance. The mangopare (hammerhead shark) pattern symbolises strength and determination, and the silver fern reflects NZ's national identity. To represent NZ's national colours, the mangopare is coloured white on the coin, with the background coloured black.