S. Africa, Home of the Kruger Rand, Issues Democracy Coins

(Bloomberg) -- South Africa, home of the Kruger rand that is the most widely held and actively traded bullion coin worldwide, issued a new set of collectible coins commemorating 25 years of democracy.

The series consists of five new 2-rand ($0.14) coins and a 5-rand coin, and will be released during the next few months, the South African Reserve Bank said on Wednesday. The coins were produced by the South African Mint and are the first to be designed with input from the public, which helped develop themes that include children’s, environmental and educational rights.

White-minority apartheid rule ended in 1994, with Nelson Mandela becoming the first president in the country’s democratic era. More than 60 million Kruger rands -- a one-ounce unit introduced in 1967 -- have been sold, according to the South African Gold Coin Exchange.

The ideas for the new coins “come from those born in a free South Africa in response to what freedom meant to them,” Tumi Tsehlo, managing director of the South African Mint, said in a statement.

To contact the reporter on this story: Tshegofatso Mokgabodi in Johannesburg at tmokgabodi@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Rene Vollgraaff at rvollgraaff@bloomberg.net, Ana Monteiro, Gordon Bell

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