How Big Would a Coin Made of $1 Trillion Worth of Platinum Be? (2024)

FAQs

How Big Would a Coin Made of $1 Trillion Worth of Platinum Be? ›

Of course this isn't what is being considered, but what if the U.S. Treasury minted a coin from $1 trillion worth of platinum? Such a coin would weigh 42,778,918 pounds -- the equivalent of nearly seven Saturn V rockets -- and occupy 31,947 cubic feet.

The trillion-dollar coin is a theoretical accounting strategy for reducing the federal debt, first proposed to circumvent congressional lockup over raising the debt ceiling. It would involve the Treasury creating a $1 trillion platinum coin and keeping it in a vault.

During Obama's talks, a radical idea to sidestep the debt ceiling bubbled up from various political and financial blogs: the Treasury Department could simply mint a trillion dollar platinum coin, deposit it with the Federal Reserve and use it to pay down debt. The notion seemed totally bonkers.

What would this coin look like? If it had the same proportions as the U.S. dollar coin, we calculated it would be roughly 80 feet wide and 6 feet thick. Though not a very practical coin, it would have the benefit of being really difficult to steal.

In January 2023, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that minting a trillion dollar coin was not on the table as a solution to the 2023 United States debt-ceiling crisis and possible U.S. default on its debt, because the Federal Reserve would be unlikely to accept it, calling it "a gimmick".

The coin — which wouldn't need to be bigger than an average coin, and can be made quickly — is part of a potential debt-ceiling loophole. The Treasury Department can mint platinum coins of any denomination.

No individual has claimed the status of trillionaire just yet. But a net worth equal to at least one trillion in U.S. dollars or a similarly valued currency isn't unattainable, but it will be a couple of years yet. Only 18 countries have a GDP that exceeds that amount. The World Bank.

One trillion dollars would stretch nearly from the earth to the sun. It would take a military jet flying at the speed of sound, reeling out a roll of dollar bills behind it, 14 years before it reeled out one trillion dollar bills.

Is it hard to sell platinum coins? ›

Sometimes platinum coins will be part of jewellery, usually as medallion pieces. When combined with other metals, the coin can be a bit problematic to sell on its own, but if the jewellery is scrap, broken and similar, the platinum coin can be separated and sold on its own.

As America's first and only official platinum bullion coin, American Eagle Platinum Bullion Coins give investors an easy way to take advantage of platinum as a precious metal investment.

Avoid handling your bullion if possible – keep your coins and bars in a safe storage place – this is the place where your coins and bars should be 99.9% of the time. If you need to handle your bullion, wear soft, lint-free cotton gloves or. Wash your hands and use hand sanitizers before touching your bullion.

Is platinum a good investment? Platinum's rarity and hardness compared with gold ensure it is recognised as the world's premier jewellery metal. Demand for platinum is also high for its use in many high-volume industrial applications, such as the manufacture of fertilizers, petroleum and fibreglass.

Strength. While both gold and platinum are strong, platinum is harder. Platinum is denser than gold, which means it's more durable, and is less likely to break. That means there's a smaller risk of you losing any of the precious metal.

Minting, coining or coinage is the process of manufacturing coins using a kind of stamping, the process used in both hammered coinage and milled coinage. This "stamping" process is different from the method used in cast coinage.

Money minting refers to the process of producing coins. A mint refers to a manufacturing facility that produces coins that are used as a nation's currency. National currencies are generally minted by a country's central bank or through an independent mint with authorization from the central bank.