December 30, 2010
Dear Valued Customer:
After weeks of trying to make sense of the unprecedented decision by the U.S. Mint to change the way in which they have released all other coins, I regret to inform you that the National Parks 5 oz. Silver Coin sets will not be available from Monaco under current market conditions.
On the basis of the U.S. Mint’s original email announcement for the coins, describing the quantity, pricing and December 6 initial order acceptance date, Monaco and dozens of other dealers made the decision to solicit reservations from customers, on a non-binding, pre-release basis. As always, the announcement stated that the terms of the Mint’s offer and sale could change. To my recollection, however, the Mint has never previously changed such terms in the way it did upon receipt of initial dealer orders for the National Park coins.
Upon receipt of those orders in the first week of December, the Mint rejected those orders, including the 500 sets for Monaco customers. The Mint explained that it had received a number of calls about the coins and expressed concerns about the way in which they were being offered by dealers with no other explanation.
It is my opinion that the Mint was concerned about inflated dealer pricing and the email subsequently sent to authorized dealers on December 10 only served to cement my belief. Many of you are probably aware by now that a small number of NGC certified sets (average grade MS68) are beginning to appear on the market for as much as $4,000. It appears that the Mint’s futile attempt to suppress premiums has had the opposite effect.
I am sticker shocked by these prices. My “gut instincts” tell me that the high prices are temporary situation and will come down dramatically as more sets make their way to market and competition increases. After all, these are modern coins and are not rare.
Due to the Mint’s new mandate limiting Monaco to one set of the coins in the original offering and the alternative of charging our customers enormous premiums for sets obtained as available on the open market, I regret to inform you that we will not be fulfilling the pre-order reservations we received from customers for the 5 oz. National Park silver coins.
My intention is always to deliver coins at a price which I believe is the best value at the time of purchase. Due to the market consequences caused by the U.S. Mint’s change in direction, I do not believe that the National Parks coins are the best value at today’s prices.
We are not planning on offering certified or uncertified examples of the National Park coins until prices settle to realistic levels, as I expect they will. If you placed a reservation on December 3 your credit card was never charged. If you did send funds, then those funds will be returned immediately with interest.
Thank you for your continued confidence and helping to make 2010 a great year. On behalf of myself and our entire staff, I wish you a prosperous New Year.
Best regards,
Adam J. Crum
Vice President of Numismatics