World Money Fair
Collectors who wanted to rush into the exhibition hall at 10 a.m. sharp on January 29, 2026, had to have strong nerves, because the large foyer was packed to the rafters. An estimated 2,000 people—and it felt like many more—stormed the event immediately after it opened. Their common goal: to secure gold, silver, and the announced mint rarities as quickly as possible.
The massive increase in gold and silver prices fueled the overwhelming interest. At the start of European trading at 6:00 a.m. CET, the price of gold was still $5,088 per ounce, but by 8:00 a.m. it had already climbed to $5,125, only to make a gigantic leap to $5,501 for the LBMA fixing. At 6 p.m., the price of gold climbed to an all-time high of $5,596. Silver moved in parallel, but not quite as exorbitantly. On Thursday, it rose from $112 to $122 at 6 p.m.
Can you imagine what that meant for coin dealers and mints? Anyone trading coins at or around the gold price was forced to change prices hourly. And all this in the midst of utter chaos, as large numbers of visitors wanted to buy whatever they could get their hands on – always under pressure that someone else might beat them to it. Within a few hours, everything that could be described as a bullion coin was sold. Most dealers had done better business in a single day than they normally did during the entire World Money Fair.
And in the meeting rooms, wholesalers were tearing their hair out because the mints could not and would not guarantee them a fixed price for their products.
Despite the booming business, the mood in the community was rather subdued. Many already feared a price collapse, which then actually followed on the second day of the World Money Fair. Between 6:00 a.m. and 11:30 a.m., the price of gold fell by more than $500 in five hours (slightly more than it had risen the day before); silver, on the other hand, plummeted by 33%, a crash so dramatic that it was surpassed only by the end of the Hunt brothers!
Not everyone was sad about this. “Now we can finally sell commemorative coins at face value again,” was the comment heard at the German stand. And most dealers breathed a sigh of relief, because it is easier and more sustainable to trade coins when gold and silver prices move slowly and predictably, when investors, not speculators, dominate the market.
Guest of honor Tower Mint and impressive exhibition stands
Somewhat overshadowed by the price of gold was the Tower Mint, which will celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2026 and was therefore the guest of honor at the World Money Fair. It should not be confused with the Royal Mint exhibition in the Tower of London. While the latter only commemorates the great past of British coin minting, the Tower Mint is the only mint still operating in London. Among other things, it mints coins for Gibraltar, the Isle of Man, and the Falkland Islands.
This is particularly noteworthy because the Tower Mint became the first private mint to appear as a guest of honor at the World Money Fair. This is a good indication of how much the role of private mints has changed in the collectors’ market. Whereas in the 1970s they were often a well-kept secret because no one wanted to admit that commemorative coins from Nigeria or Niue were not in circulation in those countries, today they are an integral part of the market. Collectors value their products because they are often more innovative in terms of techniques and motifs than state mints dare to be. So it comes as no surprise that a private institution will also be the
guest of honor in 2027. This time, it is not a mint, but CIT Coin Invest from Liechtenstein. CIT is a coin publisher, a multi-award-winning company that implements exciting coin programs in collaboration with national central banks and private mints.
Tower Mint dominated Convention Hall 1 with its stand: An enormous tower crowned it, attracting everyone’s attention. This was just one of many imaginative presentations. Numerous mints invested ideas, time, and money in their presentations, offering visitors a professional and lovingly designed atmosphere. We have never seen so many magnificent exhibition stands at the World Money Fair. They were so great that we are dedicating a separate article to them.
Not a classical coin show, but a public fair for coins
The exhibition stands, which were also of interest to a (not yet) collecting audience, fitted in perfectly with the concept of the World Money Fair. It sees itself as a link that goes beyond the traditional world of collectors to reach people who are generally interested in money. The World Money Fair wants to spark interest and turn people who are not (yet) collectors into enthusiastic coin enthusiasts.
There are various approaches to this that go far beyond the coin passport, which has been popular for many decades. Beginners can, for example, find inspiration on the so-called Live Stage. In the Minting Experience Center, they can mint their own World Money Fair medal using state-of-the-art machines – and everything that is required for this far exceeds the spindle presses commonly used at many city festivals.
An entire team uses modern social media posts to bring the content of the World Money Fair to a younger audience, who eagerly snap up the strictly limited special editions from the mints. Some of them are offered
exclusively at the World Money Fair. It is commendable that the organizers have finally managed to spread the main rush from the first day over all three days. The special editions are sold in several contingents on all three days.
A whirlwind tour through the world of numismatics
The World Money Fair is unique, and not just in terms of its concept. Anyone visiting for the first time will be amazed by the internationality of the visitors and participants. Old hands (both male and female, of course) know this and make the most of it. They prepare themselves for a kind of numismatic speed dating. Weeks before the event, appointments are made every hour or half hour to ensure that everyone you want to meet can be seen. Professional participants arrive on Monday so that they can work through their many appointments starting on Tuesday. After all, no other event offers the opportunity to see so many people from such diverse fields gathered in one place.
A clear commitment to human creativity
Every year, to give just one example, more and more coin designers attend the World Money Fair. This gives them an overview of potential customers and allows them to present their designs to them with minimal effort.
This networking is important. Even though some cheap products already use designs created in seconds by artificial intelligence, mints—both state-owned and private—are resisting this trend. They see the artist as the center and origin of every numismatic work of art!
But medallists are not born, they have to learn this demanding craft. The representatives of SAM – the Scuola dell’Arte della Medaglia – demonstrated the level of mastery they can achieve at the Italian mint’s stand. They drew, modeled in wax, and engraved – for anyone who loves classical numismatics, a wonderful testament to the fact that this demanding skill lives on!
Trying to squeeze the World Money Fair into a single article is bound to be piecemeal. It is too diverse and unique for that – in many respects. So if you are not yet familiar with the World Money Fair, treat yourself to a visit.
You might find yourself in the same boat as me: I am not a fan of Berlin. I dislike the Estrel Hotel, where the World Money Fair takes place, just as much as I dislike its location in Neukölln. Every year, I fear that a strike or the winter will make it impossible to get there or back. And yet I will not miss a single World Money Fair. The next World Money Fair, from January 28 to 30, 2027, is already marked in my calendar.
Click here to visit the World Money Fair website.
Text by Ursula Kampmann
