Donald Trump's new gold-coloured $1 coin, unveiled by the US Treasury on Wednesday as part of celebrations for America's 250th anniversary, triggered a rush of buyers that overwhelmed the US Mint's website, leaving customers stuck in lengthy virtual queues. The coin marks a symbolic milestone for Trump, whose administration pushed to feature his likeness on US currency, breaking with a long-standing convention against depicting living figures on American money.

The coins, minted in Philadelphia, are legal tender despite not entering general circulation, and are being sold in collector bundles of 25 or 100, priced between $61 and $154 — a markup of more than 50 per cent on face value. Although gold in appearance, they actually contain no gold, being made mainly of copper with nickel and manganese. The front bears Trump's portrait alongside "Liberty", "In God We Trust" and "1776 ~ 2026", while the reverse shows the presidential seal after an earlier design referencing the 2024 assassination attempt was dropped. Nine million coins were struck in July, including 250,000 special editions marked on 4 July and randomly distributed; Trump becomes only the second sitting president to appear on US coinage, a century after Calvin Coolidge.