# Where do the mint's profits go? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 27, 2008, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-the-mints-profits-go/442948 "2008-03-27T18:09:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Alex\_Dubinsky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dbc845/32.png) [@Alex\_Dubinsky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alex_Dubinsky)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2008, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-the-mints-profits-go/442948/1 "2008-03-27T18:09:40Z")
I know that when the mint normally prints money, it doesn’t make any profits. It takes money of one form (old dirty money or electronic money) and converts it into another. But what about when it prints commemorative, etc, coins and people hoard them? Where do all those huge profits go? ---
**Author:** ![mazinger\_z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@mazinger\_z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mazinger_z)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2008, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-the-mints-profits-go/442948/2 "2008-03-27T18:31:38Z")
The mint makes an enormous amount of profit simply by printing money, and a lot from having the US dollar as the world’s reserve currency. Printing commemorative coins, while surprisingly profitable, is but a drop in the bucket from the money the mint earns. Anyway, all this money goes straight to the US Treasury and ultimately to paying down bonds and T-bills. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2008, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-the-mints-profits-go/442948/3 "2008-03-27T18:35:01Z")
The US Mint doesn’t make any money from printing currency. That is the job of the US Treasury Dept. Bureau of Engraving and Printing. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2008, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-the-mints-profits-go/442948/4 "2008-03-27T18:40:57Z")
Don’t confuse the mint and the BEP. Coins are produced by the mint. Money is printed by the BEP (Bureau of Engraving and Printing). They are different agencies, though both are under the treasury dept. The home page for the mint says: > [@](#): > > Since Congress created the United States Mint on April 2, 1792, it has grown tremendously. The United States Mint receives more than $1 billion in annual revenues. As a self-funded agency, the United States Mint turns revenues beyond its operating expenses over to the General Fund of the Treasury. ---
**Author:** ![toadspittle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c0e974/32.png) [@toadspittle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toadspittle)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2008, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-the-mints-profits-go/442948/5 "2008-03-27T18:55:29Z")
[QUOTE=yabob] Don’t confuse the mint and the BEP. Coins are produced by the mint. Money is printed by the BEP (Bureau of Engraving and Printing). They are different agencies, though both are under the treasury dept. [/QUOTE] By “money” I assume you mean “paper currency”? Coins were as much money as bank notes, last time I checked. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2008, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-the-mints-profits-go/442948/6 "2008-03-27T19:00:08Z")
[QUOTE=toadspittle] By “money” I assume you mean “paper currency”? Coins were as much money as bank notes, last time I checked. [/QUOTE] Heh, OK, but they aren’t “printed”, so the mint still doesn’t print money. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2008, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-the-mints-profits-go/442948/7 "2008-03-27T19:08:33Z")
Last I heard, the U.S. mint is taking a loss on pennies and nickels. They cost more to manufacture than their face value. Might be time to start thinking out of the box here… ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2008, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-the-mints-profits-go/442948/8 "2008-03-27T19:15:48Z")
But they’re making a mint on dollar coins.