Community State Bank in Wisconsin recently launched a new incentive to help fight the coin shortage that's made its way across the U.S., Business Insider reported. The bank launched a “Coin Buy Back Program” offering a $5 bonus for every $100 worth of coins turned into any of its seven locations. Patrons and non-bank customers were eligible to participate in the program for up to a max coin bonus of $500. A week after debuting the program, the bank hit its goal and announced the incentives would expire at the end of the July 21 business day. “We knew we needed to figure something out. We hate the idea of telling our customers, ‘No, we can't give you one of the services we're proud to provide,’ so we came up with a creative way to get things done,” Community State Bank Vice President Neil Buchanan said. “Just because this hasn't been done before doesn't mean it isn't going to work — and it has already made a huge difference.” The move is the latest example of local businesses and small banks across the nation seeking to combat the coin shortage in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. Another bank in Wisconsin, Bank of Sun Prairie, recently asked its customers to deposit coins, though it did not offer a bonus. Community State Bank said it had seen strong participation and called the turnout a success. None of the major U.S. banks have announced plans to pay customers a bonus to bring in coins, but Wells Fargo said that it was “actively managing our coin inventory and working with customers to meet their coin needs to the extent possible after the Federal Reserve put limitations on coin deliveries to all financial institutions nationwide.” The coronavirus has taken a toll on coin circulation, according to the Federal Reserve. Lately, the reduced pace of circulation has led to inadequate quantities of coins.
