Limited Number Of Silver Bullion Dragon Coins To Be Released Soon

42 Comments

• February 15 2012

  Rbaggio says:

  Hi, can you comment on this:

   

  http://www.silber-corner.de/index.php?page=product&info=1098

   

  Is it true that an additional 200,000 1oz silver Dragons are about to be released onto the market?

• February 16 2012

  David.M. says:

  I checked that link, about the Lion privy Dragon coin.  If there's another 200,000 1oz silver dragons being released exactly the same as the 300,000 sold out version except for the privy, I will be very unhappy and feel duded.

• February 16 2012

  Bullion Baron says:

  I agree David, I will feel ripped off if the 200,000 mintage is accurate. In late 2011 Ron Currie said the following in regards to minting extra 1oz bullion coins:
  
  "Throughout the course of the first 12-year Australian Lunar bullion coin series and also during the second 12-year series, 1oz releases have been limited by mintage: 30,000 gold and 300,000 silver. As well as investors, these mintage quotas have also attracted collectors to the series.
  
  To increase mintages of 1oz coins during a particularly popular year could be interpreted as opportunistic and possibly damage our credibility as a Mint."
  
  http://www.perthmintbullion.com/Blog/Blog/11-09-05/Temporary_Suspension_Of_Silver_Dragon_Orders.aspx
  
  While the Privy coin could be considered a new design (technically) I feel that it's a copout for those who have purchased the bullion 1oz thinking no more would be minted and now they've thrown on a small change and nearly doubled the mintage??
  
  Why not just mint more 1/2oz, 2oz and 5oz bullion Dragons? Clearly there is the demand...
  
  My hope is that 200,000 was a typo...

• February 16 2012

  Privy Marked says:

  Know what, I have decided to sell my 2012 dragons when the buy back prices allow me to break even.

• February 16 2012

  S.D. says:

  The mintage of 1oz 2012 dragons in various versions thus far:
  
  Bullion   300,000;
  Proof   5,000;
  Proof (from 3 coin sets)   1,000;
  Coloured proof   10,000
  Gilded   50,000;
  Typeset (4 x 1,500)   6,000
  Coloured 9 typeset (for China)   20,000
  Berlin Coin Show   5,000
  Privy   200,000 (?)
  
  That is a lot of dragons....

• February 16 2012

  David.M. says:

  I understand there were to be the usual gilded, proof and coloured versions of the 2012 Dragon as there are every year, each is quite different from the bullion version.  But this privy coin is EXACTLY the same as the 300,000 minted bullion version just with a lion privy added.  This makes me mad that 200,000 of these will be minted.  Had I known they were going to be sold for about $45 a coin I wouldn't have bought the 1oz Dragons from the Perth Mint's authorised distributor at the end of last year for $85 each !!!

• February 16 2012

  C. F. says:

  ...and once all these 200,000 pieces of Lion privy Dragons have been sold out, will we see another 200,000 pieces of Dragons sporting some other animals? 

• February 17 2012

  S.D. says:

  You didn't do too bad David. M., some went for $150 each on the bay.  Still, I share your frustration.

• February 17 2012

  Dragons for All says:

  The high relief dragon due for release soon, will there be follow ups with privy marks, gilded, coloured etc. thereafter?  Just checking before plunging too deep.

• February 17 2012

  David says:

  S.D. you wrote "Coloured 9 typeset (for China)   20,000"  That actually comes to 180,000 1oz coins.
  

• February 17 2012

  S.D. says:

  Really?  20,000 sets of 9 therefore 180,000 individual pieces?  Wow.

• February 17 2012

  Bullion Baron says:

  I don't particularly see a problem with the 9 coin set (even though it adds 180,000 dragons to the mix) as it was sold as a high premium coin (e.g. $100 or so per coin) and in my opinion is not likely to drag on the price of the bullion coin, where as this new Privy Dragon is being sold for bullion prices and in my opinion will potentially impact on the value of the standard bullion coin.
  
  The funny thing is that when released the standard bullion coin was being sold by German distributors/retailers to the public for €75, where now Silver Corner is selling the Privy dragon for less than half of that price (even though Silver is only around $10 per spot lower).

• February 17 2012

  Sabrina W. says:

  The 200.000 additional Bavarian Lion Privymark coins are initiated from the German Landesbank, a state owned bank. They lost in the past a lot of money with wild speculations. Now they trey to loose money with numismatic speculations. Nobody will cry if they make 5.000 or 20.000 privy coins, but to higher the mintage of a sold out product from 300.000 to 500.000 is mistake. A mistake from the mint and a mistake from the landesbank. A big mistake! The second mistake is to sell them so cheap. If they offer these coins for 50 or 60, nobody will claim, but these thousands of coins for nearly half the market price of the regular dragons is a big marketing mistake from the mint and the landesbank. 

• February 20 2012

  Billy Black Smith says:

  Dear David Kerbey,
  
  All I can say is that if you visit coin forums, you'll realise that the release of more 1/2oz, 2oz and 5oz coins is not welcome! But, we all know that those coins have an unlimited mintge so many of us have been prepared.
  
  Please keep the mintage run short.
  
  What we haven't been prepared for is the release of an additional 200,000 x 1oz silver bullion dragons with the Lion privy.
  
  By releasing these coins, you may have inadvertently upset some of your most supportive international and local followers.
  
  Just disappointed that's all :)
  
  Billy Black Smith

• February 20 2012

  Goldpelican says:

  BBS,
  
  That's a fairly subjective point of view - the only people not interested in seeing the 1/2oz, 2oz and 5oz coins released would be people holding them hoping to cash in on their artificial scarcity created by the Perth Mint temporarily suspending production of unlimited mintage bullion coins early in their production run. I would imagine people who have paid a collectors premium wouldn't be impressed either - however this has always been declared a temporary suspension in production. Anyone who paid a collectors premium for temporarily suspended coins during their year of production as a hedge against them not re-entering production has lost their bet.
  
  From a bullion buyers perspective, there is a massive unfulfilled demand for bullion in these sizes. These coins are produced as bullion, and should be available as such.

• February 20 2012

  Billy Black Smith says:

  In reply to Goldpelican.
  
  Yes; distributors and people in the business of flipping coins would be keen for dragon coins in the 1/2, 2 and 5oz sizes.
  
  Obviously, bullion demands can be filled for the 1/2oz in either the Dragon or Koala coins.
  
  *Satisfying Bullion Demand Made Easy.
  
  As I see it, Perth could meet the needs of collectors and stackers by having a smaller run of the 1/2oz dragon!
  
  The Koala can fill the needs of the 1/2oz bullion requirements and at the same time, if the 1/2oz dragon numbers are kept low, the appreciation of the 1/20z dragon coin would be beneficial to those who are speculating or...if a collector missed out last year, they could still get a few coins at an affordable price, either from Perth or on the secondary market after 01 March 2012.
  
  
  *5oz Lunar Dragons.
  
  We had a win situation with the 5oz and 10oz rabbits last year, so if Perth has a decent run of the 5oz coins that would be great news. If they have less that's good news too.
  
  Why?
  
  Because, if new collectors purchase the 5oz bullion dragon coins when released on 01 March, they may want to complete their collections which will include the 5oz rabbit; holders of  the rabbit coins or any other 5oz in the lunar series will be happy. So it could be a win win situation.
  
  So, I think.... Perth can meet the demands of collectors, investors and speculators if they move their chess pieces well.
   Hopefully Perth, can full-fill their commercial requirements and also cater to our expectations, both in Australia and overseas.
  
  Billy Black Smith
  
  
  

• February 20 2012

  Numismatism is Dead? says:

  It is disturbing to learn that 5 years after the sell out of the original Perth Mint Red Back Spider from the Deadly & Dangerous coin series, Perth Mint then surrounded the rim on the aforesaid design with Russian text and released it as some Russian edition.
  
  Now, this.
  
  There is no guarantee to rarity here is there?
  
  
  
  

• February 20 2012

  S.B. says:

  Maybe the lunar dragon could sue the lion privy dragon.

• February 20 2012

  Ron Currie says:

  I can confirm that The Perth Mint has manufactured 200,000 Australian Lunar ‘Privy Mark’ 1oz silver bullion coins celebrating the Year of the Dragon.
  
  The coins were made for a European wholesale client, who is offering the majority of them for sale exclusively in Germany.
  
  Featuring a privy mark portraying a Bavarian Lion, the coins are different from our standard Australian Lunar bullion series. The design was submitted separately to Australian Treasury for approval with its own mintage – constituting a new and distinct coin release in law.
  
  As a commercially-driven organisation that is required to report its activities and profits annually to the Western Australian State Government (our shareholder), it is entirely normal for us to enter exclusive wholesale agreements to help fulfil our remit to “promote and develop markets for gold (and silver) in Australia and elsewhere.”
  
  But my main observation is these are bullion coins, sold primarily to investors as convenient and trusted methods of benefitting from rising precious metal prices. Given that it was recently suggested we abandon the limits on standard 1oz Lunar releases, it is ironic to receive some of these comments now.

• February 20 2012

  Bullion Baron says:

  "Given that it was recently suggested we abandon the limits on standard 1oz Lunar releases, it is ironic to receive some of these comments now."
  
  Recently suggested by who? Some lone commenter says maybe they should make the 1oz unlimited and you assumed that all Lunar investors and collectors share the same view? Are you serious?
  
  What sort of comments were you expecting from the crowd that buys your coins for their limited mintage? Did you make any attempt to seek an opinion from your customer base as to whether minting more 1oz bullion coins was a good idea? Not that I've seen and assuming you haven't then I find it particularly patronizing that you put it back on those commenting here by suggesting we should have already had a say (which seems implied by your comment "it is ironic to receive some of these comments now")
  
  I'll tell you what's ironic. The exclusive market that you produced these coins for (Germany) had dealers selling the standard bullion coin last year for one of the highest markups we saw (initially flogging them for €75, around AUD$90 at the time). Now your wholesale client is selling these copy coins for half that price. So while you may be trying to "promote and develop" this market, the feedback I've read on the German coin and precious metal investment forums suggests that many are as unhappy with this release as the rest of your customers.

• February 21 2012

  Billy Black Smith says:

  Ron,
  
  Excellent response!
  
  I also view the release of the 200,000 coins as distinct and different coin!
  
  fwiw, I think the privy dragon will have little, if any effect, on the value of the 2012 Australian Lunar Year of the Dragon 1oz Silver Bullion Coin issued by Perth back in September 2011.
  
  For those people who are concerned about any price reduction in their 1oz Lunar dragons they can do this....Don't sell them!
  
  Having said that, we all know that bullion coins fluctuate according to spot and also consumer demand. People may remember that the Perth Mints official release of the silver dragons was sold out in an hour or two. Those same coins fetched huge premiums on the secondary market. My records show that some individual coins sold at over $200 per coin, they then stabilized at about 130 -150 range and then we had the huge dip in silver spot, but those same coins were selling for between 80 and 100 bucks.
  
  Currently the coins are selling for $67 - $76 which is still a great price considering on the day they were released in September they were 49 bucks.
  So, there's a  few people, who quickly forget the profits they made because of Perth products.
  
  Without fantastic coins made by Perth, and the dedication shown by Ron and the team  by giving exposure to Perth mint bullion products, we would have just ordinary coins and an ordinary international and local stacker and collector base.
  
  Because of the effort made by Perth, we have huge, worldwide interest in the coins we collect and stack and will have for many years.
  
  Ron, well done for bringing exposure to Australian coins; a person only has to visit a few coin forums to see the positive comments for The Perth Mint bullion products.
  
  Keep up the great work.
  
  Regards
  
  Billy Black Smith
  
  
  
  

• February 21 2012

  Numismatism is Dead? says:

  Wow BBS, that is some serious.... never mind, I respect your view BBS, and that's all.
  
  However, I agree with bullion baron's, "Recently suggested by who? Some lone commenter says maybe they should make the 1oz unlimited and you assumed that all Lunar investors and collectors share the same view? Are you serious?"
  
  "What sort of comments were you expecting from the crowd that buys your coins for their limited mintage?"
  
  Well said bullion baron.
  
  I have one genuine question for Perth Mint though.  Will there be subsequent variations to the soon to be released high relief dragons?  i.e. mint mark, gold gild, colored etc. thereafter?  This is an investment decision, with reliance on Perth Mint's answer.
  

• February 21 2012

  Ron Currie says:

  Ron Currie Says
  
  "Recently suggested by who? Some lone commenter says maybe they should make the 1oz unlimited and you assumed that all Lunar investors and collectors share the same view?”[BULLION BARON]
  
  Many people who missed out on the 1oz Silver Dragon because of the fast sell out would have preferred an unlimited mintage. This was not just something suggested via the blog – but direct feedback from our clients around the world.
   
  "Will there be subsequent variations to the soon to be released high relief dragons?” [NUMISMATISM IS DEAD]
  
  We have no plans to issue any variant of the high relief silver Dragon Coin.
  
  Regards
  
  Ron Currie

• February 21 2012

  Bullion Baron says:

  It's not really surprising that those who missed out on the 1oz coins would have preferred more minted, but taking advice from that specific group of customers is hardly a balanced way of working out a consensus. Furthermore as you've already pointed out the Privy coin is almost exclusively being sold in the German market, so you've hardly produced this coin for the benefit of your clients 'all around the world'.
  
  Is there any chance that the Perth Mint will issue a Privy Mark coin for any of the previous Series 2 releases (e.g. Mouse, Ox, Rabbit, Tiger) or are these now out of bounds for production of more 1oz coins of any variant?

• February 21 2012

  A. J. says:

  I appreciate your views Billy Black Smith, but unlike you, there are people out there who bought more than one (1) piece of the 2012 1oz silver dragon bullion...
  
  ...for reasons guided by the knowledge of both the legislated cap of 300,000 pieces and solid precedence set by the mintage of prior lunar bullion.

• February 21 2012

  Billy Black Smith says:

  In reply A.J. Says:
  
  Dear A.J.
  
  I feel disappointed that you didn't have the opportunity to sell your huge quantity of dragon coins when they were being sold for over a hundred bucks each and, then buy more bullion when spot dropped recently.
  See - you haven't watched that film called 300 have you? Watch the film, you may get some tips! lol
  
  Seriously though, you guys sound like the end of the world is happening because Perth released a privy coin! I hope they release more, infact, I hope they back-date to 2008 with a new privy for each coin! Yeah, then we could have a Lunar set and a privy set just like we had with the Kooks:)
  
  Have you actually seen the price of the privy mark coin vs the  Lunar dragon series II coin? Go on - check the auction sites. Your precious lunar dragon is selling the same price now as it was last week and the week before that and it will probably still be selling at the same price in a months time.
  
  Woops, sorry for side tracking!
  
  If you check the previous lunar coins they all have peaks, troughs and finally reach a steady price. Obviously, some of you are hoping for a repeat of the Lunar dragon series I. Well, it may seem you have missed the boat but hold onto a few anyway.
  
  All is not lost you glum lot!... the privy coin is not affecting dragon coin sales, the privy is increasing in price, they are currently selling for...on average 67$ AUD.
  
  So basically, you better buy some now before they reach par with the Lunar dragon.
  
  One last thing!
  
  As Ron has said the two coins are different; not only by one having a privy mark but also by Australian Law!
  
  *Correct Titles
  
  The original issue released September 2011, is correctly titled:
  2012 Silver Australian Lunar Year of the Dragon
  
  The Lion privy coin is correctly titled:
  

  2012Lunar Dragon - Privy Mark Issue.

  Have a great night, Mr, AJ, keep your spirits up mate and......I hope you make a profit, if not this year next.

  Regards

  Billy Black Smith

• February 22 2012

  Ron Currie says:

  Is there any chance that the Perth Mint will issue a Privy Mark coin for any of the previous Series 2 releases (e.g. Mouse, Ox, Rabbit, Tiger) or are these now out of bounds for production of more 1oz coins of any variant? [Bullion Baron]
  
  There are no plans to issue privy mark versions of these previous Series II releases.
  
  Ron Currie
  

• February 22 2012

  A. J. says:

  BBS, I too have many good things to say about PM, but where a feedback over a specific topic has a slightly negative tone to it, do I obligate myself to finish off my comments with high gloss and proof like finish praises?  If I did, I'd end up with super lengthy comments but I like to keep the lengths of my comments short.
  
  As you have also mentioned in a previous thread, "...I've also shared your education, youtube videos with friends, they're terrific to watch, especially for new customers thinking of buying bullion..."
  
  I share the good things about PM and its products with my friends too.  Many of my friends were previously unaware of the silver lunar's mintage cap of 300,000.  And now, would you warn them to watch out?  Who cares what the correct titles are if they are that many of them - 2/3 of the 300,000.
  
  Answers like "...no plans to issue..." are not definitive.  What do you do?  With reliance on its initially planned mintage (scarcity), do you buy to invest only to have more soft variations popped up later?
  
  Thanks for wishing me luck, and I wish you luck and all the best in your investments.
  
  As for PM, I must acknowledge that you have been generous and open, courageous if I may add, in publishing all comments, good and not so good.  No, I wasn't obliged to say this paragraph, it's the truth.

• February 22 2012

  Bullion Baron says:

  @BBS, I bought my bullion dragons for an expected long term appreciation in price (not to flip them short term), based on the implied mintage of 300,000 (for bullion 1 ounce coins). The difference made by the Privy coins will not be reflected within a few days or weeks, but over the long term. So your comment that the standard coin is still selling at the same price now is very short sighted. Given the exclusive release location and low level of coverage on the coin from the Perth Mint it wouldn't surprise me if 80% of Lunar buyers were still not aware the extra 200,000 coins exist.
  
  @AJ, well said. There is a time for praise and a time for criticisms when due. I have promoted the Perth Mint products on my blog for a long time and will continue to do so (where deserved), but IMO this Privy coin was a bad move (and it's not the only one). At the end of the day the Perth Mint is a business operating for profit and they have to gauge whether the extra few dollars and exposure they make from releases such as this outweighs the long term negative consequences of turning off customers who are displeased with the situation. I for one will be reducing my consumption of Series 2 Lunar coins going forward as I no longer feel that I can trust Perth Mint to do the right thing by their customers. It seems they will do what they like using technicalities and small changes to work around the mintages and that isn't good enough for me.
  
  Kudos to Perth Mint for at least allowing their customers to have an uncensored say on the matter, even if it is hidden at the bottom of an unrelated post.

• February 23 2012

  I'm Provoked says:

  It could have been a 1/2oz or 2oz with the Lion privy but noooooooo it had to be a 1oz with an identical design.  Very provocative.

• February 23 2012

  Billy Black Smith says:

  In reply to Bullion Baron.
  
  I think perhaps your oversight by not capitalising on the sale of your dragon coins when you had more of an opportunity than the average investors says a lot.
  
  While the average investor was allowed 20 coins, there's people that may have the capacity to buy a lot more than 20 coins. In fact, if you visit coin forums you'll notice people who have the un-canny ability to buy many more coins than their allocation and they aren't even Perth Mint distributors. Such is life! They either make a large profit due to their networking skills or a get lumbered with a pile of coins that they "have" to stack until spot allows them to off-load, or they have to sell due to liquidity.
  
  As you know, coins in high demand appreciate quickly and then stabilize; if you are in business to make a profit, perhaps you could study trend patterns or adjust your business plan to accomodate this fact.
  
  You should be happy that you had the capacity to buy the best selling Perth Mint coin in ten years and, I'd say like others, if you didn't buy them from Perth in early September then you bought on the secondary market at a premium.
  
  This fact may be a contributing factor to your comments which really are baseless and I'll tell you why!
  
  If you bought the coins in early September from Perth you would have paid retail from Perth for about 49$ AUD, silver was trading at about 41.85$ USD. The coins were sold out as we know, and then on 26 September 2011 spot plumeted to close at 28.16 USD. 
  
  The unexpected drop caught many people off-guard, including those people that thought silver was going to break 50 but it never came.
  You probably had no choice but to hold onto your coins but "if" spot had of broken 50 bucks, you'd probably be growing:)
  
  Your high hopes for a long term capital gain is respected; many ivestors made a fabulous profits from September through to October and very reasonable profits to this day, so I don't think you can blame Perth regardless of the Lion Privy.
  
  Spot will play a large roll in profits, not a new coin issue.
  To make a claim like yours, is to me, unreasonable because no one knows the future!
  The spot price of silver could be a hundred bucks in 2 years, ten years or it could be 10 bucks!
  
  What you could do with your coins, especially if you have unbroken rolls is to have them graded by PCGS.
  
  If you visit some of the larger Perth Mint Distributor web sites you'll find  PCGS MS70 coins selling for $129.99 USD and there's no quantity caps. What this means is, the coins minted by Perth are such high quality that those tubes of coins you own will probably contain many MS 69 and MS 70 coins that you can realise a good profit on now, or hold the MS70's for the years to come.
  
  I wish you well.
  
  Please vist the Perth blog which indicated the lion privy will be available on 01 March 2012. Perhaps these coins will also help you make a profit in the months and years ahead.
  
  Billy Black Smith
  

• February 24 2012

  Anon says:

  BBS, do you work for PM?

• February 24 2012

  500,000 says:

  BBS, you have to pay me for my time if you want me to read all that.
  
  It is not that hard to understand.  It does not matter if the price goes up or down in the immediate to short term, what matters is there are people lured to the bullion's 300,000 cap and will seek some return in the future (emphasis:  not immediate or short term) with the selling phrase there are only 300,000 pieces of these made, not 500,000.

• February 25 2012

  Bullion Baron says:

  BBS said: "I think perhaps your oversight by not capitalising on the sale of your dragon coins when you had more of an opportunity than the average investors says a lot."
  
  I didn't receive my dragons until around 2 months after they were released (as was the case for many buyers as Perth Mint took considerable time getting the coins minted and distributed). So even if I wanted to, I wouldn't have been able to capitalise on the $150-$200 prices you spoke of.
  
  BBS said: "If you bought the coins in early September from Perth you would have paid retail from Perth for about 49$ AUD, silver was trading at about 41.85$ USD."
  
  I paid $44 and $48 for the majority of my 1oz bullion Dragons and later bought more at $59. But the issue here is not the cost of the coins. It wouldn't matter to me if I paid $3 for the Dragons or $300, the simple fact is that there was an implied fixed mintage for 1oz bullion Lunar coins and the Perth Mint has dishonorably (in my opinion) used a technicality to work around this mintage.
  
  Anon said: "BBS, do you work for PM?"
  
  +1 or any affiliation with the Mint at all. Honestly your posts come across as if you were a paid shill for the Perth Mint.
  

• February 25 2012

  Billy Black Smith says:

  In reply to ANON.
  
  No, I'm a private investor, and have no affiliation with Perth!

• February 27 2012

  I'm Provoked says:

  BBS, maybe I, and/or some of us didn't make ourselves clear thus I'll illustrate.
  
  Sometime in September 2011....
  
  Dude 1: Hey, buy the 2012 1oz silver bullion dragon, there are only 300,000 pieces of them.
  
  Dude 2: You serious? 
  
  Dude 1: Yeah! Guaranteed by law.  Bullion silver dragons, mintage cap of 300,000 pieces only.  There won't be enough for everyone! 
  
  Dude 2: Whoa! That's sick. I'll go grab some now.
  
  Several months later Rbaggio and BB brought to attention the extra 200,000 pieces, not paying too much attention to the minor privy...
  
  Dude 1 and Dude 2:  What the **
  
  It's a little bit like that BBS. 

• February 27 2012

  I'm Provoked says:

  Now, BBS... but what you didn't know between September 2011 and the launch of the extra 200,000 pieces...
  
  Dude 1:  Make sure you give the rest the miss for the time being, it is only the 2012 1oz silver dragon that carries the mintage cap.  I repeat, only the 1oz - capped at 300,000. (Yelling) Only the 1oz is capped at 300,000!
  
  Dude 2 then went on to justify his intentions to his missus so they withdrew some of their savings for their share of the 2012 1oz silver dragon.  They maxed out the 20 pieces per customer limit.  What not?  It was capped at 300,000 pieces only anyway.
  
  Dude 1 and 2 also went on to tell their other mates, overseas included.
  
  Happy?

• February 27 2012

  Billy Black Smith says:

  Thanks for the comments guys.
  
  Your points are well received, I hope Perth has noted your concerns and constructive criticism.
  
  Best to all who participated on this Blog.
  
  Billy Black Smith

• February 28 2012

  I'm Provoked says:

  We see honest feedback and customers pouring their feelings.  +1 BB.
  
  BBS a.k.a. PM's unofficial representative a.k.a. le défendeur demonstrated his various blocking techniques brilliantly. 
  
  Ha ha ha... BBS, you didn't give PM any opportunity to respond.
  
  I'm sure many would like to know, from PM please, if the views discussed herein will simply be ignored... because "if we don't like it move along, there are thousands out there who will buy them" ?

• March 01 2012

  Grinners says:

  That is really shady Ron Currie...
  
  Short sighted and shady.

• March 01 2012

  John Rodson says:

  Ron Currie from September 2011:
  
  "To increase mintages of 1oz coins during a particularly popular year could be interpreted as opportunistic and possibly damage our credibility as a Mint."

• March 26 2012

  David.M. says:

  Well I wont be buying the 2013 Snake come September.  But I know now to wait until March for the "Privy Snake" version which I may buy if it is priced closer to spot.