As an avid coin collector myself, I always get a buzz (pun intended!) when there’s a new release that could change the game for UK change hunters. And this week, we’ve had some breaking news that every collector should know about – the 2025 Bee £1 has officially become the rarest coin in UK circulation.
With just 170,000 entering circulation, this twelve-sided £1 has instantly overtaken the 2023 Salmon 50p (200,000 minted) and even the legendary Kew Gardens 50p in terms of scarcity. That’s right – this is now the must-find coin for anyone checking their change.
Why is this so exciting? Well, rarity always drives value. The Kew Gardens 50p, with its mintage of 210,000, regularly sells for £100+ on the secondary market. If the Bee £1 follows a similar trajectory, we could easily see a 100x multiplier on face value as collectors scramble to secure one.
The design itself is a beauty too – the humble bee, a symbol of resilience and hard work, now immortalised on the UK’s rarest £1 coin. But let’s be honest – what really matters here is the hunt. This is the type of release that has coin collectors (myself included) double-checking every coin in their change, hoping to strike lucky.
My advice? Start hunting now. These coins will vanish quickly into collections, and once they’re gone, they’re gone. If you manage to spot one in the wild, you’re holding not just £1, but potentially the rarest circulating coin in Britain – and one that could be worth far, far more.
So, to all my fellow coin hunters: keep your eyes sharp, your change close, and let’s see who can “bee” the first to track one down.