Last U.S. Penny Minted This Wednesday: Why Bitcoin Is the Future

The End of an Era for the U.S. Penny

The United States Mint officially struck its final penny, a coin valued at just one cent, marking the end of a remarkable 232-year legacy of circulating small denomination currency. The last penny was minted in Philadelphia on Wednesday, bringing a close to an era that began in 1793.

US President Donald Trump directed the Treasury to halt penny production in February, with the initial goal set for 2026. However, the minting process was curtailed earlier than anticipated after the Treasury exhausted manufacturing templates between June and September, as reported by Axios.

Currently, each penny costs approximately 3.7 times its face value to produce, totaling over three cents per coin. Despite this, the penny remains legal tender, with more than 250 billion pennies still in circulation.

said Alexander Leishman, CEO of Bitcoin financial services firm River, referring to the subunit of Bitcoin (BTC). Leishman remarked that Bitcoin’s smaller units are gaining prominence as traditional fiat currencies lose ground.

Bitcoin as a Hedge Against Currency Devaluation

Bitcoin was designed as a digital alternative to traditional fiat currencies, featuring a fixed supply cap of 21 million coins. This cap, combined with ongoing technological innovations, fosters a deflationary environment where the value of Bitcoin tends to appreciate as demand increases.

Economist Saifedean Ammous explains that technological advancements reduce the cost of production over time, leading to price deflation. In contrast, fiat currencies are continually expanded by central banks, resulting in loss of purchasing power and inflation-driven price increases.

According to Ammous, if goods, services, and assets are denominated in Bitcoin instead of fiat currency, their prices would decline over time, reflecting true value growth rather than inflation. This perspective aligns with the declining value of traditional currencies and the rising value of cryptocurrency assets.

Since the establishment of the Federal Reserve in 1913, the US dollar has lost over 92% of its value, as noted by The Gold Bureau. Meanwhile, Bitcoin recently topped $126,000, reaching new all-time highs, even as the dollar faced its worst year since 1973, according to market analysts at The Kobeissi Letter.

“The USD has lost about 40% of its purchasing power since 2000,” the report states, noting that the dollar’s decline has accelerated with over 10% loss in value just this year.

Critics like Nobel laureate Paul Krugman highlight the challenges of Bitcoin’s adoption, noting that the cryptocurrency remains less user-friendly than fiat. Krugman emphasized that the dollar’s ease of use and liquidity underpin its dominance, whereas Bitcoin’s complexity hinders everyday transactions.

As the crypto markets continue to evolve, many see digital assets like Bitcoin not only as a store of value but as a potential hedge against inflation and fiat currency devaluation, signaling a paradigm shift in how value is preserved and transferred in the digital age.

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