Swiss Mint honors tennis star Roger Federer with 20-franc coin

By Jeff Starck , Coin World

Published: Dec 10, 2019, 7 AM

Tennis star Roger Federer is the subject of a new, and already very popular, 20-franc coin from Switzerland.

Coin images courtesy of Swiss Mint.

Famed tennis star Roger Federer has his name on many a trophy earned during an illustrious 21-year career.

Soon he will appear on a commemorative Swiss coin, the first coin of Switzerland to depict a still-living person.

Federer, who is ranked world No. 3 in men’s singles tennis by the Association of Tennis Professionals, has won 20 Grand Slam singles titles — the most in history by a male player.

Federer held the world No. 1 spot in the ATP rankings for a record total of 310 weeks (including a record 237 consecutive weeks) and was the year-end No. 1 five times, four of them consecutive. He is perhaps the most successful Swiss sports personality, according to Swissmint, making him a logical choice to appear on a Swiss coin.

Strong demand for coin

The Uncirculated 20-franc silver coin is due for release Jan. 23, but pre-ordering began Dec. 2 on the Swissmint shop website (www.swissmintshop.ch), which immediately crashed.

Swissmint officials posted a brief request at the website, asking patrons for patience as the site processes the heavy orders for the forthcoming coin.

This is the first time the Swissmint has conducted a pre-sale of its 20-franc silver coin.

The Uncirculated version available now has a mintage limit of 55,000 pieces. If those are all sold by the time the pre-sale ends Dec. 19, Swissmint said it reserves the right to sell an additional 40,000 coins of the same design to be released in May 2020.

The Proof version of the same 20-franc design will be launched on Jan. 23.

A gold 50-franc coin, of a related but different design (still secret), is due for release in May 2020 as well.

The .835 fine silver 20-franc coins weigh 20 grams each and measure 33 millimeters in diameter.

The Uncirculated 20-franc coin retails for 30 francs (about $30 U.S.) and comes in a blister pack.

In total, 5,000 of the Uncirculated coins are reserved for sale beginning Jan. 23, each presented in a special folder, for 40 francs each.

The Proof version on sale that same day will be presented in a capsule and case with a numbered certificate of authenticity. It is limited to 10,000 pieces, each costing 60 francs.

Connect with Coin World: