The Ostia mint was opened by Maxentius in 308–309 with personnel and facilities transferred from the Carthage mint, which Maxentius had closed. There is a good deal of disagreement about exactly why Maxentius opened a new mint so close to the mint at Rome.

One theory links it explicitly to events in Carthage. With Ostia located at the other end of the sea route to Carthage, presumably it could meet the coinage of needs of that region almost as well as if it were located in Carthage, but could be more easily controlled by Maxentius. This was especially important given his break with Constantine and the revolt of Domitius Alexander in Carthage, both in 308. It's likely that the initial purpose of the Ostia mint was to supply the armies mustering there for the impending invasion of Africa to suppress Domitius Alexander.

Another theory is that Maxentius wanted a new mint to supplement the mint at Rome. Initially the mint at Ostia struck only gold and silver coins, while at the same time the production of gold and silver ceased at Rome, so the thinking is that Maxentius wanted to move the precious metals activity away from Rome to a location that was less volatile and more easily controlled. The mint would have then also begun striking bronze coins to supply the invasion forces for the assault on Carthage.

The coinage types were closely tied to Rome, with a wide variety of reverse designs emphasizing local civic themes, military propaganda, and traditional Roman motifs. Constantine assumed control of the mint when he defeated Maxentius in 312 and replaced them with his own standard coinage types — again mirroring those of Rome — before closing the mint for good in 313 or 314. Most of the workers were transferred to Constantine's new mint in Arelate, with Ticinum picking up the gold coin production.

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