The Nepal Rastra Bank began selling gold and silver coins on Tuesday from its mint division in Babarmahal, Kathmandu.

Demand surged as people lined up as early as 6am, hoping to buy one of the limited coins.

Bank officials said today’s sale of gold coins was limited due to a shortage of high-quality gold, with a first-come, first-served policy in place. Although gold coin sales are restricted to today only, silver coins will remain available until Wednesday, with each customer eligible to buy up to five coins.