Germany’s first ever 5-euro coin has been released into circulation… and it’s see-through!

Germany’s first ever 5-euro coin was released into circulation yesterday. Dubbed the ‘three material coin‘, it is also see-through!

Developed by Dr Peter Huber and Günther Waadt, the coin features a blue plastic ring in the middle and has been named ‘Blue Planet Earth’.

Not only is the blue ring easy to identify and authenticate by the naked eye, it is made of polymer plastic which behaves like a form of insulation between the pieces of two different metals and will be easy for cash machine to recognize whether it is real or fake.

A first in the history of coins

A German Minting Technology team has spent a decade developing this new security feature. In fact, it’s the first coin to be made from a combination of metal and plastic materials.

The plastic ring can be manufactured in any colour – perhaps we’ll see a rainbow of coloured Euro coins in the near future! It is also rumoured that the coin can change colour when exposed to UV light. 

A total of 2 million coins have been released and will undoubtedly be snapped up and highly prized by coin collectors… if they haven’t already.

Yesterday it was reported that hundreds of Germans were queuing at the Bundesbank in Frankfurt for a chance to get hold of this new cutting-edge coin.

It’s unlikely that these 5-euro coins will be used in everyday transactions but if you are lucky enough to be heading to Germany any time soon, make sure you keep a look out.

4 Comments

  1. Pawel on April 15, 2016 at 6:41 pm

    Would it be distributed by Royal mint please?



    • Yasmin Britton on April 18, 2016 at 8:44 am

      Hi Pawel, these coins are only available from banks in Germany. You may be able to find one on the secondary market though! Thanks, Yasmin



  2. Mark Scott on April 15, 2016 at 4:07 pm

    Where do I get one



    • Yasmin Britton on April 18, 2016 at 8:46 am

      Hi Mark, you’ll have to take a trip to Germany in order to get one of these coins. You may be able to find one on the secondary market though. Thanks, Yasmin