The spot price of the precious metals, gold, and silver, has been reportedly impacting the collectable prices, but not the scarce coins over the years.

The trend towards bullion trades over numismatic coins is growing, to the tune of some coin dealers abandoning the coins entirely.

These dealers reportedly send the coins to be melted instead of selling off the coins at modest collector premiums. The scenario thus created is interesting, as future rarity is created in recent years, especially among the issued coins.

Over the years, circulating silver coins of 1964 and earlier have reportedly been melted. The scenario implies that the coins that were once common become rare. However, this has not been observed as an eventuality, and the supply is apparently not endless. There is a declining number of collectors, which implies less demand for the surviving examples and encouraging the melting of coins even more.

Some experts believe that this would change as it historically does. The vast number of made-for-collector pieces issued by the U.S. and foreign mints, regardless of any secondary market, is seen as a part of the problem. Another aspect is the rise of digital currencies, which younger people apparently use. These individuals also have little interest in using physical cash. Challenges for the future are apparent, but few people would still use and want to use physical cash. Organized coin collecting faces the challenge of attracting these individuals.