Euro Coin Exchange is pleased to announce that we have joined CARE, one of the world’s largest private humanitarian organizations, as a “Partner for Change.”  Our customers can now put their foreign change (coins and other currency) to work by mailing it to Euro Coin Exchange and instructing us to send their proceeds directly to CARE to benefit humanitarian relief efforts worldwide. To sweeten the deal, when a customer directs us to send their payment to CARE, we will add an extra five percent to our regular exchange rate as a matching contribution.

Donating is easy. Complete your packing list as you would with any currency exchange. Check the “Donate” box. Enter the Promo Code “CARE.” Mail your coins to Euro Coin Exchange. We will process your shipment the same as any other, except that we will send your payment directly to CARE (along with our 5% matching gift).

CARE is a 501(c)3 nonprofit humanitarian organization that has been fighting global poverty since 1946. Last year, CARE worked in 84 countries and reached 122 million people around the world. According to their published reports, ninety-one percent (91%) of CARE’s expended resources are devoted entirely to program activities.

Note: 100% of all funds which we are directed by our customers to pay to the charities of their choice is actually paid to those charities without deduction. We receive no payments, fees, commissions, advertising consideration, promotional reimbursement or other compensation of any kind from any charitable organization mentioned on our site. Other than revenue derived directly from currency exchange activities, we receive no compensation whatsoever from our customers’ contributions of foreign currency to charity through our business. By adding 5% to our best available rate on all transactions designated as charitable contributions, we ensure that our profit margin for currency exchange on those transactions is lower than any other similar transactions which we perform. Euro Coin Exchange is not a paid fundraiser, nor are we engaged in charitable solicitations on behalf of any organization in any jurisdiction.

It’s probably not too much of a stretch to say that nearly every home in America has a stash of Canadian coins sitting in a drawer. Somewhere along the line, somebody in the household started pulling Canadian coins out of their pocket change, tossed it in a jar, and said “someday I’ll spend those coins in Canada.”

We’ve decided to help send those Canadian coins back home for the holidays, and benefit kids in foster care in the process.

Here in the Atlanta area, where we call home, everyone (it seems) listens to syndicated radio talk show host and consumer advocate Clark Howard. Every year around Christmas time, Clark broadcasts live from area Walmart stores and collects donations from his loyal listeners for one of his (and our) favorite causes: a program he calls Clark’s Christmas Kids.  2011 marked the 20th year that Clark collected gifts and money to provide holiday gifts for children in foster care, and he’ll certainly do it again this year. According to his website, Clark’s Christmas Kids Campaign collects about half of all the gifts Georgia Department of Family and Children’s Services gives to children in foster care each year.

From now through Christmas, when you send your Canadian coins to us in exchange for US dollars, insert the Promo Code “KIDS” on your packing slip and we will make your check payable to Clark’s Christmas Kids. We’ll send your check directly to Clark, in your name, and provide you with proof of payment. To thank you for your generosity, we’ll increase our best available rate on Canadian coins by 5%.

And we’ll do our best to get those Canadian coins home for the holidays.

Do you have more than 25 pounds of Canadian coins you’d like to donate? Give us a call toll-free at 855-EUROCOIN (855-387-6264) and we’ll pay your shipping cost.

The Canadian government just announced it will pull the penny from circulation at the end of 2012.  This renewed the decades-long discussion about whether it’s time for the U.S. to do the same.

For our customers, the bigger question is whether it’s time to finally cash in their big jar of Canadian pennies and other coins. Will my Canadian pennies be worthless? Is there a deadline? What about my other Canadian currency?

Canadian currency has been undergoing a bit of a facelift recently. High-tech polymer (plastic) $100 and $50 bills were recently introduced to replace the traditional paper notes.  The two-dollar coin, the “toonie”, is being replaced with a slightly modified version which is composed of a different alloy and weighs a fraction less. The older coins will gradually be withdrawn from the system as they get deposited into Canadian banks, but will continue to be accepted as legal tender indefinitely. Apparently, the pennies will be handled the same way as the toonies. Canadian pennies will remain valid for any use they are currently accepted for, but as they get deposited they will be retired from circulation. Canada replaced their $1 and $2 bills with coins a while ago using the same method.

So what does that mean for you? For the time being, it’s probably not too big a deal. Spring is here, though, and what better time than spring to unload some unwanted clutter? Even better, why not convert it to spendable cash? Send your old, leftover Canadian coins to Euro Coin Exchange, and we’ll buy them for U.S. dollars. We buy all Canadian coins and paper money (right down to the pennies, and including old notes which your bank or local currency exchange won’t accept).

But brace yourself, the “Let’s Get Rid of the Penny” debate is getting ready to start again here at home.

For immediate release:

ATLANTA — The Canadian government announced it will pull the penny from circulation at the end of 2012. What do you do if you live in the U.S. and have a jar of Canadian pennies and other coins at home? “Don’t worry,” says Ken Mitteldorf, owner of Atlanta-based Euro Coin Exchange.

Americans have always had a fondness and a bit of fascination with the coins issued by our neighbors to the north. Who doesn’t pause for a moment to examine a Canadian penny found in their pocket change, or can’t recall a relative or neighbor with a jar full of Canadian quarters sitting on their kitchen shelf?

The only Americans who don’t seem to like Canadian coins are banks (and some merchants). Most banks refuse to accept foreign coins, and even banks close to the Canadian border will not allow their customers to deposit or exchange Canadian coins. If you have a stash of Canadian coins and are not planning a trip to Canada this year, what’s the best way to exchange them for U.S. dollars?

According to Ken Mitteldorf, owner of Euro Coin Exchange, there’s never been a better time than right now to convert your Canadian coins to U.S. dollars, and it’s never been easier. Euro Coin Exchange buys Canadian coins from businesses and individuals in all fifty states. “All of our customers deal with us through the mail, and the US Postal Service makes it simple, safe, economical and convenient,” Mitteldorf explained. The Atlanta-based company’s customers include individual consumers, banks, vending companies, armored car companies, local governments and not-for-profit agencies.

On the Euro Coin Exchange web site, the company reminds customers of the Postal Service slogan “If It Fits, It Ships” and suggests using US Postal Service Flat Rate Boxes. A small Flat Rate Box, which ships for around $5.00, will hold up to five pounds of coins. A medium size box will hold 40-50 pounds of coins and costs a little over $10 to mail from anywhere in the US. Smaller quantities can be shipped using a tear-resistant padded or bubble-wrap envelope.

Mitteldorf also suggests that this could be a great time for nonprofit groups to consider collecting Canadian coins as a fundraising project. “Donors are often happy to find a good use for the foreign coins and notes they’ve accumulated, and we make it easy for nonprofits to turn those donations into spendable cash.”

Euro Coin Exchange is a web-based, mail-order currency exchange providing U.S. businesses and individuals a convenient way to sell their Canadian, British and euro coins and notes for a fair price. The company also buys old (pre-euro) paper currency such as German Deutsche Marks, Irish pounds and Spanish pesetas. In addition, Euro Coin Exchange buys American coins and mutilated banknotes from overseas currency exchanges and other businesses, and assists those customers with shipping their bulk coins back to the U.S., clearing customs and arranging for deposit into an American bank. In August 2011 Euro Coin Exchange opened an office near London with a dedicated website (http://www.webuyeuros.co.uk) to serve customers throughout the U.K

For more information, see http://www.webuyeuros.com or http://www.webuyeuros.co.uk.

Contact:

Ken Mitteldorf

Euro Coin Exchange

ken.mitteldorf@webuyeuros.com

855-EUROCOIN (855-387-6264)

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To coincide with the opening of our new office in the UK, Euro Coin Exchange is proud to announce a new initiative to promote the donation of foreign coins as a way to support your favorite charities.

Since its earliest days, our company has promoted foreign coins and other currency as a charitable giving vehicle. You can still donate euros, pounds or Canadian coins to support the Red Cross or CARE’s relief efforts in Haiti. If you would like to see your foreign coins (including Yen) aid in Japan’s recovery from the earthquake and tsunami and their lingering after-effects, we can assist you. Old Dutch guilders (banknotes only) can support global humanitarian projects. Closer to home, you can buy holiday gifts for kids in foster care with your Canadian coins, your old Irish pounds can now help promote traditional Irish music and dance in the Atlanta area, or your own local group can collect unwanted Canadian coins as a simple and easy fundraiser.

As we designed our UK website and customer payment system, one of the requirements we imposed upon ourselves was to make charitable giving a major focus. Thanks to the efforts of our UK Director, Christian Rayner, we have a simple and elegant way to support thousands of different charities. When our UK customers send in their euro coins in exchange for pounds, they can conveniently choose among any of the 162,000+ registered charities in England or Wales, and have a check made payable to their selected organization mailed directly to the charity or to the customer. In addition, if a friend or colleague is raising money for charity via the Just Giving website, UK customers can elect to have the proceeds from their leftover or unwanted euros credited directly to their beneficiary’s JustGiving account, referencing the customer’s name. Our customer can verify their contribution through the Just Giving website.

We plan to add more options for giving in the upcoming months, and hope to incorporate the system we launched in the UK on our US website soon.

Update August 18, 2011: We have redesigned the Charitable Giving section of our website, and modified our internal procedures, to allow our US customers to donate their foreign coins and paper money to virtually any charity of their choice, either directly or through JustGiving’s US counterpart, www.FirstGiving.com!

For immediate release:

London — Euro Coin Exchange, the leading buyer of euro coins in the U.S., announced the opening of a coin processing center near London to serve customers throughout the U.K. Initially, the U.K. office will exchange euro coins and banknotes for pounds exclusively.

Christian Rayner, Director of U.K. operations for Euro Coin Exchange, explained the significance of the company’s new office in the Thames Valley. “Until now, customers who wanted to exchange euro coins for pounds had few options, if any. Now they can turn to an established, customer-focused business which keeps the process convenient, simple and economical. All of our business is done via mail so converting euro coins into pounds is as easy as a trip to the post office.”

The U.K. operation is the company’s first venture outside the United States. Founded by attorney Ken Mitteldorf in Atlanta, Georgia, Euro Coin Exchange has established itself as the leading North American buyer of non-collectable euro and British coins from individuals and businesses on the internet. In the U.S., the company buys euros, pounds and Canadian coins, as well as pre-euro paper money, and imports bulk U.S. coins from other countries.

On the Euro Coin Exchange website the process for exchanging euro coins by mail is explained in easy-to-understand terms. There are multiple payment options, including cheque, PayPal and direct-to-your-bank electronic transfer. For customers who prefer to donate their euro coins to charity, Euro Coin Exchange offers several options, with the emphasis on personal choice and flexibility.

According to Rayner, the company plans to develop additional charitable giving options for its customers, and offer fundraising opportunities for small and large charities. “These are challenging economic times for the UK, both for individuals and the charitable sector. Cashing in your leftover currency is a good way to free up some extra cash and it’s also a relatively painless way of donating to good causes. Our ‘Donate to charity’ option lets customers decide (from thousands of different charities) which charity they would like to support. This includes donating to a friend or colleague’s fundraising account on Justgiving.com.”

Company founder Mitteldorf observed, “Our customers are thrilled when they find out about our service. In many cases, they have been told by their bank that their euro coins are worthless. We offer them a fair price and a convenient transaction, regardless of where they live. Now we can offer that same convenience to customers in the U.K.”

On its web site, Euro Coin Exchange reminds its customers ‘We can’t perform miracles.’ The price it pays for all coins depends upon prevailing exchange rates, the demand for coins in the market, transportation costs and other factors. Quoting from the advice Mr. Mitteldorf regularly offers to travelers, Rayner explains, “Coins are more expensive to process than notes, so it makes sense to spend your coins in the country where they were acquired. If you bring euro coins home and want to exchange them for pounds, come and see us. We’re as close as your computer and convenient as your mailbox.”

Euro Coin Exchange is a web-based, mail-order currency exchange providing U.S. businesses and individuals a convenient way to sell their Canadian, British and euro coins for a fair price.  The company also buys old (pre-euro) paper currency. In addition, Euro Coin Exchange buys American coins and mutilated banknotes from overseas currency exchanges and other businesses, and assists those customers with shipping their bulk coins back to the U.S., clearing customs and arranging for secure transportation and deposit into an American bank. In August 2011 Euro Coin Exchange opened an office near London with a dedicated website (http://www.webuyeuros.co.uk) to serve customers throughout the U.K.

For more information, see http://www.webuyeuros.com or http://www.webuyeuros.co.uk.

Contact:
Christian Rayner
Director, Euro Coin Exchange (UK)
crayner@webuyeuros.co.uk
+44 1344 206226
Freephone (w/in the UK): 0800 612 4465

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We’ve got some exciting news for our friends in the UK who have been asking us to open an office to buy their euro coins for pounds. The new office is officially open, along with a separate website specifically for our UK customers. You sent us the Beatles; we sent you us. Hardly an even trade, but who ever said life was fair?

Until recently, customers in the UK needed to mail or courier their coins and banknotes across the Atlantic in order to use our service. Not anymore. Now they have the convenience and affordability of converting their euro coins into pounds by mail, dealing with the most trusted name in the business, and without paying international postal rates.

Our UK launch is somewhat of a “soft opening.” We are only buying euro coins and banknotes (no other currencies for the time being). In the UK we buy all euro coins – right down to the pennies. For customers who wish to exchange pre-euro banknotes (German marks, French francs, etc.), that business is still being handled through our US office only. The good news is that postage to the US when sending banknotes is far less than you might expect. Postage via Royal Mail for a dozen banknotes and our packing slip in a standard business envelope is roughly £2. Delivery time is generally less than a week, and we can pay you in pounds, dollars or euros (your choice) via PayPal, so you will have your cash in hand instantly.

If you live anywhere in the UK and have euro coins left over from a holiday or business trip, or a box of coins accumulated over several years, you now have an ideal way to exchange your euro coins for sterling. Please visit our new website. If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, we would welcome your enquiry. The Director of our UK operation, Christian Rayner, is also available if you have any special business needs related to your euro coins.

Contact info:

http://www.webuyeuros.co.uk

enquiries@webuyeuros.co.uk

+44 1344 206226
Freephone (w/in the UK): 0800 612 4465

Postal address:

ECE – Processing Centre
PO Box 4201
BRACKNELL
RG42 9NP

For immediate release:

Christian Rayner, Director of new UK office

Atlanta, GA — Euro Coin Exchange, the leading buyer of euro coins in the U.S., announced the appointment of Christian Rayner as Director of the company’s U.K. operations. The announcement accompanied the opening of the company’s new coin processing center in the Thames Valley, near London, serving customers throughout the U.K. Initially, the U.K. office will exchange euro coins and banknotes for pounds exclusively.

Kenneth Mitteldorf, the founder of Euro Coin Exchange, made the announcement from the company’s principal office in suburban Atlanta, GA. ‘Christian is a perfect fit for our business,’ Mitteldorf said as he welcomed Rayner to his new position. “The key to our success in the U.S. has been an almost religious commitment to first class customer service. Fair prices. Prompt payment. Customer communication. Ease of use. These principles have always been the foundation of our business. I’m thrilled to see our first international office being run by someone who shares this commitment.”

Mr. Rayner has spent 25 years working in the IT industry, including ten years with Microsoft UK. As a seasoned business traveler and regular visitor to the Eurozone himself, Mr Rayner relates closely to the problem of amassing a collection of foreign coins and then not knowing what to do with them. A recent trip to the middle east prompted him to think about how to solve this problem, which is ultimately what led him to join Euro Coin Exchange.

Mitteldorf also expressed his enthusiasm for Rayner’s plans to expand the company’s offerings of charitable giving opportunities. “We have historically encouraged our customers to support charities by donating their foreign currency to worthy causes, and by assisting charities in converting their own collections into dollars. Christian made it clear to me from our early discussions onward that his vision for our U.K. operations included his insistence upon facilitating charitable work. Our new U.K. website, http://www.WeBuyEuros.co.uk, reflects his bold first steps toward fulfillment of that goal.”

The U.K. operation is the company’s first venture outside the United States. Founded by attorney Ken Mitteldorf in Atlanta, Georgia, Euro Coin Exchange has established itself as the leading North American buyer of non-collectable euro and British coins from individuals and businesses on the internet. In the U.S., the company buys euros, pounds and Canadian coins, as well as pre-euro paper money, and imports bulk U.S. coins from other countries.

ABOUT Euro Coin Exchange: Euro Coin Exchange is a web-based, mail-order currency exchange providing U.S. businesses and individuals a convenient way to sell their Canadian, British and euro coins for a fair price.  The company also buys old (pre-euro) paper currency. In addition, Euro Coin Exchange buys American coins and mutilated banknotes from overseas currency exchanges and other businesses, and assists those customers with shipping their bulk coins back to the U.S., clearing customs and arranging for secure transportation and deposit into an American bank. In August 2011 Euro Coin Exchange opened an office near London with a dedicated website (http://www.webuyeuros.co.uk) to serve customers throughout the U.K.

For more information, see http://216.172.190.0/~kenmitt or http://www.webuyeuros.co.uk.

Contact:
Ken Mitteldorf
ken.mitteldorf@webuyeuros.com
678-559-6796
Toll-free (w/in US): 855-EUROCOIN (855-387-6264)

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On June 24, Euro Coin Exchange was featured on Business Hour with Ron Comacho, a weekly business radio program carried by America’s Web Radio. I spent an enjoyable morning chatting with Ron about our little corner of the currency exchange business, the services we offer and some of the challenges we face as a small business in a tough economy. You can listen to my interview by clicking on Ron’s Listen button.

If you have old French francs sitting in a dresser drawer, or Finnish banknotes you’ve been saving from your college trip to Helsinki, the time to cash them in is rapidly approaching.

“What – those things are still good?” Yes, you can still cash in some, but not all, paper currency from back in the days before the euro. But here’s the catch, some of those notes expire shortly after New Year’s Day, 2012. Euro Coin Exchange will buy your French and Finnish notes through December 31, 2011.

Here are the details. Most French banknotes have already expired and are now worthless. There are still five varieties, millions of which are still in circulation, which can still be cashed in and exchanged for euros. You can find pictures of the five French notes here. French franc coins have all been de-monetized, so you can keep using them as poker chips. As for the Finnish paper money, Finland’s central bank still allows all Finnish markka to be redeemed for euros, but the absolute deadline expires in early 2012.

We will buy all of your Finnish banknotes, regardless of date of issue, and five specific French bills, only through December 31, 2011. We do not buy old French or Finnish coins. Don’t let your foreign money expire worthless.

In addition to French and Finnish currency, we also convert the old paper money from nine other euro-zone countries into dollars: Austria, Belgium, Estonia, Germany, Ireland, Malta, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain. Despite what your bank or the clerk at the currency exchange may have told you, you can still get US dollars in exchange for these pre-euro currencies. See our Rates page for pricing, and consult our country-specific pages for pictures of the notes we will redeem.

Although we will not buy Italian lira or Dutch guilder paper money (it’s a long story related to each of those countries’ conversion to the euro), we will accept them and donate them on your behalf to global humanitarian organizations such as Doctors Without Borders and the International Red Cross.

So the message here is clear. If you have old European paper money wasting away at home, cash it in NOW!