Record number of counterfeit euro coins in circulation
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The central banks of the European Union countries took a record number of counterfeit euro coins out of circulation last year. According to the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF), more than 74,000 forged euro coins were found and melted down in 2004. In 2003 the number was 26,000, and in 2002 it was slightly over 2,000.
Most of the false coins were German. Counterfeiters also tend to favour French, Spanish, Belgian, and Italian euro coins.
The number of counterfeit coins found in Finland quadrupled from the previous year. The National Bureau of investigation reports that last year 1,884 bad euro coins emerged in Finland, most of which were German, but some were also Finnish.
The proportion of forgeries among euro coins is relatively small, as there are a total of 55 billion coins in circulation in the euro zone.
The ECB reports that a total of 594,000 counterfeit euro banknotes were pulled from circulation last year. More than 1,700 of them were detected in Finland.
Helsingin Sanomat
