We spend a lot of time in the personal finance blogosphere discussing finances, taking out a home equity line of credit, and making short and long term financial goals. All this talk about money has got me thinking. How much do we really know about money? Actual money that is. For example, did you know that the collective debt in the United States is 10 times larger than all the U.S. money in circulation, which is 1.2 trillion! Amazing right? Check out these other fascinating facts about money.
Pennies are different in more ways than one
Although many are in favor of getting rid of the penny, there are more pennies produced than any other coin denomination. The U.S. Mint produces more than 13 billion pennies each year. Since it’s inception, there have been eleven different penny designs. The penny with the portrait of Lincoln faces to the right, while all other portraits fact to the left. There is no specific reason for this, it was simply the choice of the coin designer. Pennies are composed of mostly zinc, although each contains a small percentage of copper, too.