60 Years of Decimal Currency – The 2026 Anniversary Coins and Sets

On 14 February 1966, Australia changed the way it counted money. Pounds, shillings and pence gave way to dollars and cents, and the whole country had to learn a new system at once.

The preparation was enormous. A Decimal Currency Board guided the process over years. A national competition chose the name, and while austral and royal were floated, dollar won on practicality. Then came Dollar Bill, the cheerful cartoon character who appeared on television, posters and pamphlets with the jingle Decimal Currency – The Easy Way. It remains one of the most effective public education campaigns this country has run.

Sixty years on, the Royal Australian Mint has marked the anniversary across a full range of releases.

The 60th Anniversary of Decimal Currency 2026 Uncirculated Six-Coin Year Set is the entry point at $40. Six coins covering the standard denominations, with custom 10c and 50c reverses celebrating both pre-decimal and decimal designs.

The Proof Six-Coin Year Set is $150. Six individually encapsulated proof coins in a display case, with an informative booklet and outer box. If you keep one year set from 2026, this is the one to keep.

The $1 Uncirculated Four Coin Set at $40 takes a different angle. It brings together a 'C' Mintmark coin with 'S', 'M' and 'B' Privy Mark coins, with a reverse combining design elements from all eight standard circulating Australian coins. Mintmark collectors will understand the appeal immediately.

In gold, the $10 1/10oz Gold Proof Coin is $950. At the top sits the Six-Coin Gold Proof Year Set at $32,500 — all six denominations in 99.99% gold, proof finish, in a premium display case with a hand-engraved plaque and numbered certificate. Maximum mintage is 50 sets. That is a serious number.

Reverse designs across the anniversary releases are by Aaron Baggio, with the Daniel Thorne effigy of King Charles III on the obverse.

All at recommended retail at Mint Coin Shop. Anniversary year sets are the ones people wish they had bought properly the first time.

Shop now at: mintcoinshop.com.au

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