The U.S. Mint's website experienced significant disruptions and prolonged virtual queues on Wednesday as demand surged for a newly released gold-colored $1 coin featuring Donald Trump's portrait. The coin, part of the nation's 250th-anniversary celebration, includes inscriptions of 'Liberty,' 'In God We Trust,' and '1776 ~ 2026.'
Although not intended for general circulation, the coins are legal tender. They are being sold by the government in collector bundles of 25 or 100, with prices ranging from $61 to $154, representing a markup of over 50 percent above their face value. Online shoppers faced wait times exceeding an hour to access the mint's purchasing portal.
The release marks a symbolic achievement for Trump, whose administration advocated for placing his likeness on U.S. currency, a move that departs from a long-standing tradition against featuring living individuals on American money. The coins, despite their appearance, are primarily composed of copper, nickel, and manganese, and contain no actual gold.
This coin's design follows a 2020 law passed by Congress that permits the Treasury Department to mint special $1 coins for the 250th anniversary. The law specifies that while living individuals cannot be depicted on the reverse side, their faces can appear on the front. Trump is the second sitting president to be featured on an American coin, following Calvin Coolidge, who appeared on a half-dollar commemorating the nation's 150th anniversary 100 years prior.
An earlier design concept reportedly considered honoring Trump's response to an assassination attempt with the inscription 'Fight, Fight, Fight.' However, to mitigate potential political backlash, the Treasury ultimately opted to replace this with the presidential seal on the coin's reverse.
The Philadelphia Mint produced nine million of these coins in July. Among them, 250,000 were minted on July 4th with a special privy mark and distributed randomly in rolls and bags sold online.
This initiative follows a proposal from Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in May for a $250 banknote bearing Trump's portrait and signature, though the necessary legislation is still pending in Congress. Additionally, Trump's signature is being incorporated onto newly printed $100 bills and is slated for future inclusion on other denominations.
A lawsuit challenging the Treasury's authority to produce the coins was dismissed earlier this year after a federal judge declined to issue an injunction.