Euro - wikipedia Euro This article is about the currency. For other uses, see Euro ( disambiguation ). `` EUR '' redirects here. For other uses, see EUR ( disambiguation ). Euro евро ( Bulgarian ), ευρώ ( Greek ), euró ( Hungarian ), eoró ( Irish ), eiro ( Latvian ), euras ( Lithuanian ), ewro ( Maltese ), evro ( Slovene ) Euro banknotes as of 2017 ISO 4217 Code EUR Number 978 Exponent Denominations Subunit 1 / 100 cent Actual usage varies depending on language Plural See Euro linguistic issues cent See article Symbol € Nickname The single currency local names Евро ( Bulgarian ) Eυρώ ( Greek ) Euró ( Hungarian ) Eiro ( Latvian ) Euras ( Lithuanian ) Ewro ( Maltese ) Evro ( Slovene ) Banknotes € 5, € 10, € 20, € 50, € 100, € 200, € 500 ( until the end of 2018 ) Coins 1c, 2c, 5c, 10c, 20c, 50c, € 1, € 2 Demographics Official user ( s ) Eurozone ( 19 ) Austria Belgium Cyprus Estonia Finland France Germany Greece Ireland Italy Latvia Lithuania Luxembourg Malta Netherlands Portugal Slovakia Slovenia Spain Monetary agreement ( 9 ) Andorra Monaco San Marino Vatican City Akrotiri and Dhekelia ( United Kingdom ) Clipperton Island ( France ) Saint Barthélemy ( France ) French Southern and Antarctic Lands ( France ) Saint Pierre and Miquelon ( France ) Unofficial user ( s ) Unilateral adoption ( 2 ) Kosovo Montenegro Other partial users ( 2 ) Northern Cyprus Zimbabwe Issuance Central bank European Central Bank Website www.ecb.europa.eu Printer Several Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato Banco de Portugal Bank of Greece Banque de France Bundesdruckerei Central Bank of Ireland De La Rue Fábrica Nacional de Moneda y Timbre François - Charles Oberthur Giesecke & Devrient Royal Joh. Enschedé National Bank of Belgium Österreichische Banknoten - und Sicherheitsdruck GmbH Setec Oy Website Several Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato Banco de Portugal -- Imprensa Nacional / Casa da Moeda Bank of Greece Banque de France Bundesdruckerei Central Bank and Financial Services Authority of Ireland De La Rue Fábrica Nacional de Moneda y Timbre François - Charles Oberthur Giesecke & Devrient Royal Joh. Enschedé National Bank of Belgium Oesterreichische Banknoten - und Sicherheitsdruck GmbH Setec Oy Mint Several Bayerisches Hauptmünzamt, Munich ( Mint mark : D ) Currency Centre Fábrica Nacional de Moneda y Timbre Hamburgische Münze ( J ) Imprensa Nacional Casa da Moeda SA Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato Koninklijke Nederlandse Munt Koninklijke Munt van België / Monnaie Royale de Belgique Mincovňa Kremnica Monnaie de Paris Münze Österreich Rahapaja Oy / Myntverket i Finland Ab Staatliche Münze Berlin ( A ) Staatliche Münze Karlsruhe ( G ) Staatliche Münze Stuttgart ( F ) Lithuanian Mint Website Several Munich mint Currency Centre Fábrica Nacional de Moneda y Timbre Hamburg mint Imprensa Nacional -- Casa da Moeda SA Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato Koninklijke Nederlandse Munt Koninklijke Munt van België / Monnaie Royale de Belgique Monnaie de Paris Münze Österreich Rahapaja Oy / Myntverket i Finland Ab Berlin mint Karlsruhe - Stuttgart mints Lithuanian mint Valuation Inflation 1.5 % ( 2017 ) Source Eurostat Method HICP Pegged by 11 currencies Bosnia & Herz. convertible mark Bulgarian lev Cape Verdean escudo Central African CFA franc CFP franc Comorian franc Danish krone ( ± 2.25 % ) Moroccan dirham São Tomé and Príncipe dobra West African CFA franc The euro ( sign : € ; code : EUR ) is the official currency of the European Union. Currently 19 of 28 member states use the euro ( eurozone ). It is the second most traded currency in the foreign exchange market after the United States dollar. The euro is subdivided into 100 cents ( defined as eurocent ). The currency is also officially used by the institutions of the European Union and four other European countries, as well as unilaterally by two others, and is consequently used daily by some 337 million Europeans as of 2015. Outside Europe, a number of overseas territories of EU members also use the euro as their currency. Additionally, 210 million people worldwide as of 2013 use currencies pegged to the euro. The euro is the second largest reserve currency as well as the second most traded currency in the world after the United States dollar. As of January 2017, with more than € 1.1 trillion in circulation, the euro has one of the highest combined values of banknotes and coins in circulation in the world, having surpassed the U.S. dollar. The name euro was officially adopted on 16 December 1995 in Madrid. The euro was introduced to world financial markets as an accounting currency on 1 January 1999, replacing the former European Currency Unit ( ECU ) at a ratio of 1 : 1 ( US $1.1743 ). Physical euro coins and banknotes entered into circulation on 1 January 2002, making it the day - to - day operating currency of its original members, and by May 2002 had completely replaced the former currencies. While the euro dropped subsequently to US $0.83 within two years ( 26 October 2000 ), it has traded above the U.S. dollar since the end of 2002, peaking at US $1.60 on 18 July 2008. Since late 2009, the euro has been immersed in the European sovereign - debt crisis which has led to the creation of the European Financial Stability Facility as well as other reforms aimed at stabilising the currency. In July 2012, the euro fell below US $1.21 for the first time in two years, following concerns raised over Greek debt and Spain 's troubled banking sector. As of February 2018, the euro -- dollar exchange rate stands at ~ US $1.24. Contents 1 Administration 2 Issuing modalities for banknotes 3 Characteristics 3.1 Coins and banknotes 3.2 Payments clearing, electronic funds transfer 3.3 Currency sign 4 History 4.1 Introduction 4.2 Eurozone crisis 5 Direct and indirect usage 5.1 Direct usage 5.2 Use as reserve currency 5.3 Currencies pegged to the euro 6 Economics 6.1 Optimal currency area 6.2 Transaction costs and risks 6.3 Price parity 6.4 Macroeconomic stability 6.4. 1 Trade 6.4. 2 Investment 6.4. 3 Inflation 6.4. 4 Exchange rate risk 6.4. 5 Financial integration 6.4. 6 Effect on interest rates 6.4. 7 Price convergence 6.4. 8 Tourism 7 Exchange rates 7.1 Flexible exchange rates 7.2 Against other major currencies 8 Linguistic issues 9 See also 10 Notes 11 References 12 Further reading 13 External links Administration The European Central Bank has its seat in Frankfurt ( Germany ) and is in charge of the monetary policy of the euro area. Main articles : European Central Bank, Maastricht Treaty, and Eurogroup The euro is managed and administered by the Frankfurt - based European Central Bank ( ECB ) and the Eurosystem ( composed of the central banks of the eurozone countries ). As an independent central bank, the ECB has sole authority to set monetary policy. The Eurosystem participates in the printing, minting and distribution of notes and coins in all member states, and the operation of the eurozone payment systems. The 1992 Maastricht Treaty obliges most EU member states to adopt the euro upon meeting certain monetary and budgetary convergence criteria, although not all states have done so. The United Kingdom and Denmark negotiated exemptions, while Sweden ( which joined the EU in 1995, after the Maastricht Treaty was signed ) turned down the euro in a 2003 referendum, and has circumvented the obligation to adopt the euro by not meeting the monetary and budgetary requirements. All nations that have joined the EU since 1993 have pledged to adopt the euro in due course. Issuing modalities for banknotes Since 1 January 2002, the national central banks ( NCBs ) and the ECB have issued euro banknotes on a joint basis. Euro banknotes do not show which central bank issued them. Eurosystem NCBs are required to accept euro banknotes put into circulation by other Eurosystem members and these banknotes are not repatriated. The ECB issues 8 % of the total value of banknotes issued by the Eurosystem. In practice, the ECB 's banknotes are put into circulation by the NCBs, thereby incurring matching liabilities vis - à - vis the ECB. These liabilities carry interest at the main refinancing rate of the ECB. The other 92 % of euro banknotes are issued by the NCBs in proportion to their respective shares of the ECB capital key, calculated using national share of European Union ( EU ) population and national share of EU GDP, equally weighted. Characteristics Coins and banknotes Main articles : Euro coins and Euro banknotes Euro coins and banknotes of various denominations The euro is divided into 100 cents ( sometimes referred to as euro cents, especially when distinguishing them from other currencies, and referred to as such on the common side of all cent coins ). In Community legislative acts the plural forms of euro and cent are spelled without the s, notwithstanding normal English usage. Otherwise, normal English plurals are sometimes used, with many local variations such as centime in France. All circulating coins have a common side showing the denomination or value, and a map in the background. Due to the linguistic plurality in the European Union, the Latin alphabet version of euro is used ( as opposed to the less common Greek or Cyrillic ) and Arabic numerals ( other text is used on national sides in national languages, but other text on the common side is avoided ). For the denominations except the 1 -, 2 - and 5 - cent coins, the map only showed the 15 member states which were members when the euro was introduced. Beginning in 2007 or 2008 ( depending on the country ) the old map is being replaced by a map of Europe also showing countries outside the Union like Norway. The 1 -, 2 - and 5 - cent coins, however, keep their old design, showing a geographical map of Europe with the 15 member states of 2002 raised somewhat above the rest of the map. All common sides were designed by Luc Luycx. The coins also have a national side showing an image specifically chosen by the country that issued the coin. Euro coins from any member state may be freely used in any nation that has adopted the euro. The new banknotes were introduced in the beginning of 2013. The top half of the image shows the front side of the banknote and the bottom half shows the back side. 10 euro note from the new Europa series written in Latin ( EURO ) and Greek ( ΕΥΡΩ ) alphabets, but also in the Cyrillic ( ЕВРО ) alphabet, as a result of Bulgaria joining the European Union in 2007. The coins are issued in € 2, € 1, 50c, 20c, 10c, 5c, 2c, and 1c denominations. To avoid the use of the two smallest coins, some cash transactions are rounded to the nearest five cents in the Netherlands and Ireland ( by voluntary agreement ) and in Finland ( by law ). This practice is discouraged by the Commission, as is the practice of certain shops of refusing to accept high - value euro notes. Commemorative coins with € 2 face value have been issued with changes to the design of the national side of the coin. These include both commonly issued coins, such as the € 2 commemorative coin for the fiftieth anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Rome, and nationally issued coins, such as the coin to commemorate the 2004 Summer Olympics issued by Greece. These coins are legal tender throughout the eurozone. Collector coins with various other denominations have been issued as well, but these are not intended for general circulation, and they are legal tender only in the member state that issued them. The design for the euro banknotes has common designs on both sides. The design was created by the Austrian designer Robert Kalina. Notes are issued in € 500, € 200, € 100, € 50, € 20, € 10, € 5. Each banknote has its own colour and is dedicated to an artistic period of European architecture. The front of the note features windows or gateways while the back has bridges, symbolising links between countries and with the future. While the designs are supposed to be devoid of any identifiable characteristics, the initial designs by Robert Kalina were of specific bridges, including the Rialto and the Pont de Neuilly, and were subsequently rendered more generic ; the final designs still bear very close similarities to their specific prototypes ; thus they are not truly generic. The monuments looked similar enough to different national monuments to please everyone. Payments clearing, electronic funds transfer Main article : Single Euro Payments Area Capital within the EU may be transferred in any amount from one country to another. All intra-EU transfers in euro are treated as domestic transactions and bear the corresponding domestic transfer costs. This includes all member states of the EU, even those outside the eurozone providing the transactions are carried out in euro. Credit / debit card charging and ATM withdrawals within the eurozone are also treated as domestic transactions ; however paper - based payment orders, like cheques, have not been standardised so these are still domestic - based. The ECB has also set up a clearing system, TARGET, for large euro transactions. Currency sign The euro sign ; logotype and handwritten Main article : Euro sign A special euro currency sign ( € ) was designed after a public survey had narrowed the original ten proposals down to two. The European Commission then chose the design created by the Belgian Alain Billiet. Of the symbol, the EC stated Inspiration for the € symbol itself came from the Greek epsilon ( Є ) -- a reference to the cradle of European civilisation -- and the first letter of the word Europe, crossed by two parallel lines to ' certify ' the stability of the euro. -- European Commission The European Commission also specified a euro logo with exact proportions and foreground and background colour tones. While the Commission intended the logo to be a prescribed glyph shape, font designers made it clear that they intended to design their own variants instead. Typewriters lacking the euro sign can create it by typing a capital `` C '', backspacing, and overstriking it with the equal ( `` = '' ) sign. Placement of the currency sign relative to the numeric amount varies from nation to nation, but for texts in English the symbol ( or the ISO - standard `` EUR '' ) should precede the amount. There is no official symbol for the cent. History Main article : History of the euro Introduction This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( December 2017 ) Preceding national currencies of the Eurozone Currency Code ( ISO 4217 ) Rate Fixed on Yielded Austrian schilling ATS 7001137603000000000 ♠ 13.7603 1998 - 12 - 31 1999 - 01 - 01 Belgian franc BEF 7001403399000000000 ♠ 40.3399 1998 - 12 - 31 1999 - 01 - 01 Cypriot pound CYP 6999585274000000000 ♠ 0.585274 2007 - 07 - 10 2008 - 01 - 01 Dutch guilder NLG 7000220371000000000 ♠ 2.20371 1998 - 12 - 31 1999 - 01 - 01 Estonian kroon EEK 7001156466000000000 ♠ 15.6466 2010 - 07 - 13 2011 - 01 - 01 Finnish markka FIM 7000594573000000000 ♠ 5.94573 1998 - 12 - 31 1999 - 01 - 01 French franc FRF 7000655957000000000 ♠ 6.55957 1998 - 12 - 31 1999 - 01 - 01 German mark DEM 7000195583000000000 ♠ 1.95583 1998 - 12 - 31 1999 - 01 - 01 Greek drachma GRD 7002340750000000000 ♠ 340.75 2000 - 06 - 19 2001 - 01 - 01 Irish pound IEP 6999787564000000000 ♠ 0.787564 1998 - 12 - 31 1999 - 01 - 01 Italian lira ITL 7003193627000000000 ♠ 1,936.27 1998 - 12 - 31 1999 - 01 - 01 Latvian lats LVL 6999702804000000000 ♠ 0.702804 2013 - 07 - 09 2014 - 01 - 01 Lithuanian litas LTL 7000345280000000000 ♠ 3.4528 2014 - 07 - 23 2015 - 01 - 01 Luxembourgish franc LUF 7001403399000000000 ♠ 40.3399 1998 - 12 - 31 1999 - 01 - 01 Maltese lira MTL 6999429300000000000 ♠ 0.4293 2007 - 07 - 10 2008 - 01 - 01 Monégasque franc MCF 7000655957000000000 ♠ 6.55957 1998 - 12 - 31 1999 - 01 - 01 Portuguese escudo PTE 7002200482000000000 ♠ 200.482 1998 - 12 - 31 1999 - 01 - 01 Sammarinese lira SML 7003193627000000000 ♠ 1,936.27 1998 - 12 - 31 1999 - 01 - 01 Slovak koruna SKK 7001301260000000000 ♠ 30.126 2008 - 07 - 08 2009 - 01 - 01 Slovenian tolar SIT 7002239640000000000 ♠ 239.64 2006 - 07 - 11 2007 - 01 - 01 Spanish peseta ESP 7002166386000000000 ♠ 166.386 1998 - 12 - 31 1999 - 01 - 01 Vatican lira VAL 7003193627000000000 ♠ 1,936.27 1998 - 12 - 31 1999 - 01 - 01 The euro was established by the provisions in the 1992 Maastricht Treaty. To participate in the currency, member states are meant to meet strict criteria, such as a budget deficit of less than 3 % of their GDP, a debt ratio of less than 60 % of GDP ( both of which were ultimately widely flouted after introduction ), low inflation, and interest rates close to the EU average. In the Maastricht Treaty, the United Kingdom and Denmark were granted exemptions per their request from moving to the stage of monetary union which resulted in the introduction of the euro. ( For macroeconomic theory, see below. ) The name `` euro '' was officially adopted in Madrid on 16 December 1995. Belgian Esperantist Germain Pirlot, a former teacher of French and history is credited with naming the new currency by sending a letter to then President of the European Commission, Jacques Santer, suggesting the name `` euro '' on 4 August 1995. Due to differences in national conventions for rounding and significant digits, all conversion between the national currencies had to be carried out using the process of triangulation via the euro. The definitive values of one euro in terms of the exchange rates at which the currency entered the euro are shown on the right. The rates were determined by the Council of the European Union, based on a recommendation from the European Commission based on the market rates on 31 December 1998. They were set so that one European Currency Unit ( ECU ) would equal one euro. The European Currency Unit was an accounting unit used by the EU, based on the currencies of the member states ; it was not a currency in its own right. They could not be set earlier, because the ECU depended on the closing exchange rate of the non-euro currencies ( principally the pound sterling ) that day. The procedure used to fix the conversion rate between the Greek drachma and the euro was different, since the euro by then was already two years old. While the conversion rates for the initial eleven currencies were determined only hours before the euro was introduced, the conversion rate for the Greek drachma was fixed several months beforehand. The currency was introduced in non-physical form ( traveller 's cheques, electronic transfers, banking, etc. ) at midnight on 1 January 1999, when the national currencies of participating countries ( the eurozone ) ceased to exist independently. Their exchange rates were locked at fixed rates against each other. The euro thus became the successor to the European Currency Unit ( ECU ). The notes and coins for the old currencies, however, continued to be used as legal tender until new euro notes and coins were introduced on 1 January 2002. The changeover period during which the former currencies ' notes and coins were exchanged for those of the euro lasted about two months, until 28 February 2002. The official date on which the national currencies ceased to be legal tender varied from member state to member state. The earliest date was in Germany, where the mark officially ceased to be legal tender on 31 December 2001, though the exchange period lasted for two months more. Even after the old currencies ceased to be legal tender, they continued to be accepted by national central banks for periods ranging from several years to indefinitely ( the latter for Austria, Germany, Ireland, Estonia and Latvia in banknotes and coins, and for Belgium, Luxembourg, Slovenia and Slovakia in banknotes only ). The earliest coins to become non-convertible were the Portuguese escudos, which ceased to have monetary value after 31 December 2002, although banknotes remain exchangeable until 2022. Eurozone crisis Main articles : Eurozone crisis and Greek government - debt crisis See also : 2008 -- 11 Icelandic financial crisis Budget deficit of the euro area compared to the United States and the UK. Following the U.S. financial crisis in 2008, fears of a sovereign debt crisis developed in 2009 among investors concerning some European states, with the situation becoming particularly tense in early 2010. Greece was most acutely affected, but fellow Eurozone members Cyprus, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, and Spain were also significantly affected. All these countries utilized EU funds except Italy, that is a major donor of the EFSF. To be included in the eurozone, countries had to fulfil certain convergence criteria, but the meaningfulness of such criteria was diminished by the fact it was not enforced with the same level of strictness among countries. According to the Economist Intelligence Unit in 2011, `` ( I ) f the ( euro area ) is treated as a single entity, its ( economic and fiscal ) position looks no worse and in some respects, rather better than that of the US or the UK '' and the budget deficit for the euro area as a whole is much lower and the euro area 's government debt / GDP ratio of 86 % in 2010 was about the same level as that of the United States. `` Moreover '', they write, `` private - sector indebtedness across the euro area as a whole is markedly lower than in the highly leveraged Anglo - Saxon economies ''. The authors conclude that the crisis `` is as much political as economic '' and the result of the fact that the euro area lacks the support of `` institutional paraphernalia ( and mutual bonds of solidarity ) of a state ''. The crisis continued with S&P downgrading the credit rating of nine euro - area countries, including France, then downgrading the entire European Financial Stability Facility ( EFSF ) fund. A historical parallel -- to 1931 when Germany was burdened with debt, unemployment and austerity while France and the United States were relatively strong creditors -- gained attention in summer 2012 even as Germany received a debt - rating warning of its own. Direct and indirect usage Further information : Eurozone, International status and usage of the euro, and Enlargement of the eurozone Austria Belgium Cyprus Finland Estonia France Greece Germany Ireland Italy Latvia Lithuania Lux. Malta Netherlands Portugal Slovakia Slovenia Spain Andorra Monaco San Marino Vatican Kosovo Mont. Eurozone Members Monetary agreement Unilaterally adopted Direct usage The euro is the sole currency of 19 EU member states : Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Spain. These countries constitute the `` eurozone '', some 332 million people in total as of 2013. With all but two of the remaining EU members obliged to join, together with future members of the EU, the enlargement of the eurozone is set to continue. Outside the EU, the euro is also the sole currency of Montenegro and Kosovo and several European microstates ( Andorra, Monaco, San Marino and the Vatican City ) as well as in four overseas territories of EU members that are not themselves part of the EU ( Saint Barthélemy, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, the French Southern and Antarctic Lands and Akrotiri and Dhekelia ). Together this direct usage of the euro outside the EU affects nearly 3 million people. The euro has been used as a trading currency in Cuba since 1998, and Syria since 2006. There are also various currencies pegged to the euro ( see below ). In 2009, Zimbabwe abandoned its local currency and used major currencies instead, including the euro and the United States dollar. Use as reserve currency Since its introduction, the euro has been the second most widely held international reserve currency after the U.S. dollar. The share of the euro as a reserve currency increased from 18 % in 1999 to 27 % in 2008. Over this period, the share held in U.S. dollar fell from 71 % to 64 % and that held in Yen fell from 6.4 % to 3.3 %. The euro inherited and built on the status of the Deutsche Mark as the second most important reserve currency. The euro remains underweight as a reserve currency in advanced economies while overweight in emerging and developing economies : according to the International Monetary Fund the total of euro held as a reserve in the world at the end of 2008 was equal to $1.1 trillion or € 850 billion, with a share of 22 % of all currency reserves in advanced economies, but a total of 31 % of all currency reserves in emerging and developing economies. The possibility of the euro becoming the first international reserve currency has been debated among economists. Former US Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan gave his opinion in September 2007 that it was `` absolutely conceivable that the euro will replace the US dollar as reserve currency, or will be traded as an equally important reserve currency ''. In contrast to Greenspan 's 2007 assessment, the euro 's increase in the share of the worldwide currency reserve basket has slowed considerably since 2007 and since the beginning of the worldwide credit crunch related recession and European sovereign - debt crisis. Currencies pegged to the euro Main article : International status and usage of the euro Worldwide use of the euro and the US dollar : Eurozone External adopters of the euro Currencies pegged to the euro Currencies pegged to the euro within narrow band United States External adopters of the US dollar Currencies pegged to the US dollar Currencies pegged to the US dollar within narrow band Note : The Belarusian ruble is pegged to the euro, Russian ruble and US $ in a currency basket. Outside the eurozone, a total of 22 countries and territories that do not belong to the EU have currencies that are directly pegged to the euro including 13 countries in mainland Africa ( CFA franc ), two African island countries ( Comorian franc and Cape Verdean escudo ), three French Pacific territories ( CFP franc ) and three Balkan countries, Bosnia and Herzegovina ( Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark ), Bulgaria ( Bulgarian lev ) and Macedonia ( Macedonian denar ). On 28 July 2009, São Tomé and Príncipe signed an agreement with Portugal which will eventually tie its currency to the euro. Additionally, the Moroccan dirham is tied to a basket of currencies, including the euro and the US dollar, with the euro given the highest weighting. With the exception of Bosnia, Bulgaria, Macedonia ( which had pegged their currencies against the Deutsche Mark ) and Cape Verde ( formerly pegged to the Portuguese escudo ), all of these non-EU countries had a currency peg to the French Franc before pegging their currencies to the euro. Pegging a country 's currency to a major currency is regarded as a safety measure, especially for currencies of areas with weak economies, as the euro is seen as a stable currency, prevents runaway inflation and encourages foreign investment due to its stability. Within the EU several currencies are pegged to the euro, mostly as a precondition to joining the eurozone. The Bulgarian lev was formerly pegged to the Deutsche Mark ; one other EU currency with a direct peg due to ERM II is the Danish krone. In total, as of 2013, 182 million people in Africa use a currency pegged to the euro, 27 million people outside the eurozone in Europe, and another 545,000 people on Pacific islands. Since 2005, stamps issued by the Sovereign Military Order of Malta have been denominated in euros, although the Order 's official currency remains the Maltese scudo. The Maltese scudo itself is pegged to the euro and is only recognised as legal tender within the Order. Economics Optimal currency area Further information : Optimum currency area In economics, an optimum currency area, or region ( OCA or OCR ), is a geographical region in which it would maximise economic efficiency to have the entire region share a single currency. There are two models, both proposed by Robert Mundell : the stationary expectations model and the international risk sharing model. Mundell himself advocates the international risk sharing model and thus concludes in favour of the euro. However, even before the creation of the single currency, there were concerns over diverging economies. Before the late - 2000s recession it was considered unlikely that a state would leave the euro or the whole zone would collapse. However the Greek government - debt crisis led to former British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw claiming the eurozone could not last in its current form. Part of the problem seems to be the rules that were created when the euro was set up. John Lanchester, writing for The New Yorker, explains it : `` The guiding principle of the currency, which opened for business in 1999, were supposed to be a set of rules to limit a country 's annual deficit to three per cent of gross domestic product, and the total accumulated debt to sixty per cent of G.D.P. It was a nice idea, but by 2004 the two biggest economies in the euro zone, Germany and France, had broken the rules for three years in a row. '' Transaction costs and risks Most traded currencies by value Currency distribution of global foreign exchange market turnover Rank Currency ISO 4217 code ( symbol ) % daily share ( April 2016 ) United States dollar USD ( $ ) 87.6 % Euro EUR ( € ) 31.4 % Japanese yen JPY ( ¥ ) 21.6 % Pound sterling GBP ( £ ) 12.8 % 5 Australian dollar AUD ( A $ ) 6.9 % 6 Canadian dollar CAD ( C $ ) 5.1 % 7 Swiss franc CHF ( Fr ) 4.8 % 8 Renminbi CNY ( 元 ) 4.0 % 9 Swedish krona SEK ( kr ) 2.2 % 10 New Zealand dollar NZD ( NZ $ ) 2.1 % 11 Mexican peso MXN ( $ ) 1.9 % 12 Singapore dollar SGD ( S $ ) 1.8 % 13 Hong Kong dollar HKD ( HK $ ) 1.7 % 14 Norwegian krone NOK ( kr ) 1.7 % 15 South Korean won KRW ( ₩ ) 1.7 % 16 Turkish lira TRY ( ₺ ) 1.4 % 17 Russian ruble RUB ( ₽ ) 1.1 % 18 Indian rupee INR ( ₹ ) 1.1 % 19 Brazilian real BRL ( R $ ) 1.0 % 20 South African rand ZAR ( R ) 1.0 % Other 7.1 % Total 200.0 % The most obvious benefit of adopting a single currency is to remove the cost of exchanging currency, theoretically allowing businesses and individuals to consummate previously unprofitable trades. For consumers, banks in the eurozone must charge the same for intra-member cross-border transactions as purely domestic transactions for electronic payments ( e.g., credit cards, debit cards and cash machine withdrawals ). Financial markets on the continent are expected to be far more liquid and flexible than they were in the past. The reduction in cross-border transaction costs will allow larger banking firms to provide a wider array of banking services that can compete across and beyond the eurozone. However, although transaction costs were reduced, some studies have shown that risk aversion has increased during the last 40 years in the Eurozone. Price parity Another effect of the common European currency is that differences in prices -- in particular in price levels -- should decrease because of the law of one price. Differences in prices can trigger arbitrage, i.e., speculative trade in a commodity across borders purely to exploit the price differential. Therefore, prices on commonly traded goods are likely to converge, causing inflation in some regions and deflation in others during the transition. Some evidence of this has been observed in specific eurozone markets. Macroeconomic stability Before the introduction of the euro, some countries had successfully contained inflation, which was then seen as a major economic problem, by establishing largely independent central banks. One such bank was the Bundesbank in Germany ; the European Central Bank was modelled on the Bundesbank.. The euro has come under criticism due to its imperialistic style regulation, lack of flexibility and rigidity towards sharing member States on issues such as nominal interest rates Many national and corporate bonds denominated in euro are significantly more liquid and have lower interest rates than was historically the case when denominated in national currencies. While increased liquidity may lower the nominal interest rate on the bond, denominating the bond in a currency with low levels of inflation arguably plays a much larger role. A credible commitment to low levels of inflation and a stable debt reduces the risk that the value of the debt will be eroded by higher levels of inflation or default in the future, allowing debt to be issued at a lower nominal interest rate. Unfortunately, there is also a cost in structurally keeping inflation lower than in the United States, UK, and China. The result is that seen from those countries, the euro has become expensive, making European products increasingly expensive for its largest importers. Hence export from the euro zone becomes more difficult. In general, those in Europe who own large amounts of euros are served by high stability and low inflation. Trade A 2009 consensus from the studies of the introduction of the euro concluded that it has increased trade within the eurozone by 5 % to 10 %, although one study suggested an increase of only 3 % while another estimated 9 to 14 %. However, a meta - analysis of all available studies suggests that the prevalence of positive estimates is caused by publication bias and that the underlying effect may be negligible. Furthermore, studies accounting for time trend reflecting general cohesion policies in Europe that started before, and continue after implementing the common currency find no effect on trade. These results suggest that other policies aimed at European integration might be the source of observed increase in trade. Investment Physical investment seems to have increased by 5 % in the eurozone due to the introduction. Regarding foreign direct investment, a study found that the intra-eurozone FDI stocks have increased by about 20 % during the first four years of the EMU. Concerning the effect on corporate investment, there is evidence that the introduction of the euro has resulted in an increase in investment rates and that it has made it easier for firms to access financing in Europe. The euro has most specifically stimulated investment in companies that come from countries that previously had weak currencies. A study found that the introduction of the euro accounts for 22 % of the investment rate after 1998 in countries that previously had a weak currency. Inflation The introduction of the euro has led to extensive discussion about its possible effect on inflation. In the short term, there was a widespread impression in the population of the eurozone that the introduction of the euro had led to an increase in prices, but this impression was not confirmed by general indices of inflation and other studies. A study of this paradox found that this was due to an asymmetric effect of the introduction of the euro on prices : while it had no effect on most goods, it had an effect on cheap goods which have seen their price round up after the introduction of the euro. The study found that consumers based their beliefs on inflation of those cheap goods which are frequently purchased. It has also been suggested that the jump in small prices may be because prior to the introduction, retailers made fewer upward adjustments and waited for the introduction of the euro to do so. Exchange rate risk One of the advantages of the adoption of a common currency is the reduction of the risk associated with changes in currency exchange rates. It has been found that the introduction of the euro created `` significant reductions in market risk exposures for nonfinancial firms both in and outside Europe ''. These reductions in market risk `` were concentrated in firms domiciled in the eurozone and in non-euro firms with a high fraction of foreign sales or assets in Europe ''. Financial integration The introduction of the euro seems to have had a strong effect on European financial integration. According to a study on this question, it has `` significantly reshaped the European financial system, especially with respect to the securities markets (... ) However, the real and policy barriers to integration in the retail and corporate banking sectors remain significant, even if the wholesale end of banking has been largely integrated. '' Specifically, the euro has significantly decreased the cost of trade in bonds, equity, and banking assets within the eurozone. On a global level, there is evidence that the introduction of the euro has led to an integration in terms of investment in bond portfolios, with eurozone countries lending and borrowing more between each other than with other countries. Effect on interest rates Long - term interest rates of Euro countries, 1993 -- 2017 As of January 2014, and since the introduction of the euro, interest rates of most members countries ( particularly those with a weak currency ), have decreased. Some of these countries had the most serious sovereign financing problems. The effect of declining interest rates, combined with excess liquidity continually provided by the ECB, made it easier for banks within the countries in which interest rates fell the most, and their linked sovereigns, to borrow significant amounts ( above the 3 % of GDP budget deficit imposed on the eurozone initially ) and significantly inflate their public and private debt levels. Following the financial crisis of 2007 -- 2008, governments in these countries found it necessary to bail out or nationalise their privately held banks to prevent systemic failure of the banking system when underlying hard or financial asset values were found to be grossly inflated and sometimes so near worthless there was no liquid market for them. This further increased the already high levels of public debt to a level the markets began to consider unsustainable, via increasing government bond interest rates, producing the ongoing European sovereign - debt crisis. Price convergence The evidence on the convergence of prices in the eurozone with the introduction of the euro is mixed. Several studies failed to find any evidence of convergence following the introduction of the euro after a phase of convergence in the early 1990s. Other studies have found evidence of price convergence, in particular for cars. A possible reason for the divergence between the different studies is that the processes of convergence may not have been linear, slowing down substantially between 2000 and 2003, and resurfacing after 2003 as suggested by a recent study ( 2009 ). Tourism A study suggests that the introduction of the euro has had a positive effect on the amount of tourist travel within the EMU, with an increase of 6.5 %. Exchange rates Euro - US Dollar exchange rate, starting from 2002. More recent information is available here. Flexible exchange rates The ECB targets interest rates rather than exchange rates and in general does not intervene on the foreign exchange rate markets. This is because of the implications of the Mundell -- Fleming model, which implies a central bank can not ( without capital controls ) maintain interest rate and exchange rate targets simultaneously, because increasing the money supply results in a depreciation of the currency. In the years following the Single European Act, the EU has liberalised its capital markets, and as the ECB has chosen monetary autonomy, the exchange - rate regime of the euro is flexible, or floating. In its first decade, the euro appreciated relative to the currency of Europe 's main trading partners. Starting at US $1.60 in 2008, the euro declined to US $ 1.04 in 2015. In the following years the euro has recovered somewhat ; as of February 2018 it was US $1.23. Against other major currencies The euro is the second-most widely held reserve currency after the U.S. dollar. After its introduction on 4 January 1999 its exchange rate against the other major currencies fell reaching its lowest exchange rates in 2000 ( 25 October vs the U.S. dollar, 26 October vs Japanese Yen, 3 May vs Pound Sterling ). Afterwards it regained and its exchange rate reached its historical highest point in 2008 ( 15 July vs U.S. dollar, 23 July vs Japanese Yen, 29 December vs Pound Sterling ). With the advent of the global financial crisis the euro initially fell, only to regain later. Despite pressure due to the European sovereign - debt crisis the euro remained stable. In November 2011 the euro 's exchange rate index -- measured against currencies of the bloc 's major trading partners -- was trading almost two percent higher on the year, approximately at the same level as it was before the crisis kicked off in 2007. In late January 2018, the euro rose again above US1.25.It also hit new relative or absolute highs against £ and other currencies. Current and historical exchange rates against 29 other currencies ( European Central Bank ) Current dollar / euro exchange rates ( BBC ) Historical exchange rate from 1971 until now Current EUR exchange rates From Google Finance : AUD CAD CHF GBP HKD JPY USD RUB INR CNY From Yahoo ! Finance : AUD CAD CHF GBP HKD JPY USD RUB INR CNY From XE : AUD CAD CHF GBP HKD JPY USD RUB INR CNY From OANDA : AUD CAD CHF GBP HKD JPY USD RUB INR CNY From fxtop.com : AUD CAD CHF GBP HKD JPY USD RUB INR CNY Linguistic issues Main article : Linguistic issues concerning the euro 5 euro note from the new Europa series written in Latin ( EURO ) and Greek ( ΕΥΡΩ ) alphabets, but also in the Cyrillic ( ЕВРО ) alphabet, as a result of Bulgaria joining the European Union in 2007. The formal titles of the currency are euro for the major unit and cent for the minor ( one hundredth ) unit and for official use in most eurozone languages ; according to the ECB, all languages should use the same spelling for the nominative singular. This may contradict normal rules for word formation in some languages, e.g., those where there is no eu diphthong. Bulgaria has negotiated an exception ; euro in the Bulgarian Cyrillic alphabet is spelled as eвро ( evro ) and not eуро ( euro ) in all official documents. In the Greek script the term ευρώ ( evró ) is used ; the Greek `` cent '' coins are denominated in λεπτό / ά ( leptó / á ). Official practice for English - language EU legislation is to use the words euro and cent as both singular and plural, although the European Commission 's Directorate - General for Translation states that the plural forms euros and cents should be used in English. See also European Union portal Numismatics portal Currency union List of currencies replaced by the euro Captain Euro Notes Jump up ^ Except northern Cyprus that uses Turkish lira Jump up ^ Including overseas departments Jump up ^ Except Campione d'Italia that uses Swiss franc. Jump up ^ Only the European part of the country is part of the EU and uses the euro. The Caribbean Netherlands introduced the United States dollar in 2011. Curaçao, Sint Maarten and Aruba have their own currencies, which are pegged to the dollar. Jump up ^ `` Monetary Agreement between the European Union and the Principality of Andorra ''. Official Journal of the European Union. 17 December 2011. Retrieved 2012 - 09 - 08. Jump up ^ `` By monetary agreement between France ( acting for the EC ) and Monaco ''. Retrieved 30 May 2010. Jump up ^ `` By monetary agreement between Italy ( acting for the EC ) and San Marino ''. Retrieved 30 May 2010. Jump up ^ `` By monetary agreement between Italy ( acting for the EC ) and Vatican City ''. Retrieved 30 May 2010. Jump up ^ `` By the third protocol to the Cyprus adhesion Treaty to EU and British local ordinance '' ( PDF ). Retrieved 17 July 2011. Jump up ^ `` By agreement of the EU Council ''. Retrieved 30 May 2010. Jump up ^ `` By UNMIK administration direction 1999 / 2 ''. Unmikonline.org. Archived from the original on 7 June 2011. Retrieved 30 May 2010. Jump up ^ See Montenegro and the euro Jump up ^ `` Euro is widely used alongside Turkish Lira ''. BBC News. Retrieved 29 May 2014. Jump up ^ `` Most places in North Cyprus will accept euros ''. Telegraph. Retrieved 29 May 2014. Jump up ^ `` In Zimbabwe there are nine currencies, amongst others the euro and the US dollar ''. uselessk.com. Retrieved 29 May 2014. Jump up ^ `` Currently, the South African rand, Botswana pula, pound sterling, euro, and the United States dollar are all in use ''. geocurrents.info. Retrieved 29 May 2014. Jump up ^ As of 26 April 2013 : Total EUR currency ( coins and banknotes ) in circulation 771.5 ( banknotes ) + 21.032 ( coins ) = 792.53 billion EUR * 1.48 ( exchange rate ) = 1,080 billion USD Total USD currency ( coins and banknotes ) in circulation 859 billion USD `` Table 2 : Euro banknotes, values ( EUR billions, unless otherwise indicated, not seasonally adjusted ) '' ( PDF ). European Central Bank. Archived from the original ( PDF ) on 22 February 2010. Retrieved 13 December 2009. 2009, October : Total banknotes : 771.5 ( billion EUR ) `` Table 4 : Euro coins, values ( EUR millions, unless otherwise indicated, not seasonally adjusted ) '' ( PDF ). European Central Bank. Archived from the original ( PDF ) on 22 February 2010. Retrieved 13 December 2009. 2009, October : Total coins : 21,032 ( million EUR ) `` Money Stock Measures ''. Federal Reserve Statistical Release. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. Retrieved 13 December 2009. Table 5 : Not Seasonally Adjusted Components of M1 ( Billions of dollars ), not seasonally adjusted, October 2009 : Currency : 859.3 ( billion USD ) `` Euro foreign exchange reference rates ''. European Central Bank. Retrieved 13 December 2009. Exchange rate 2009 - 10 - 30 : 1 EUR = 1.48 USD Jump up ^ In the quotation, the epsilon is actually represented with the Cyrillic capital letter Ukrainian ye ( Є, U+ 0404 ) instead of the technically more appropriate Greek lunate epsilon symbol ( ε, U + 03F5 ). Jump up ^ by means of Council Regulation 2866 / 98 ( EC ) of 31 December 1998. Jump up ^ by Council Regulation 1478 / 2000 ( EC ) of 19 June 2000 Jump up ^ The total sum is 200 % because each currency trade always involves a currency pair. References Jump up ^ Official documents and legislation refer to the euro as `` the single currency ''. `` Council Regulation ( EC ) No 1103 / 97 of 17 June 1997 on certain provisions relating to the introduction of the euro ''. Official Journal L 162, 19 June 1997 P. 0001 -- 0003. European Communities. 19 June 1997. Retrieved 1 April 2009. 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Rules for expressing monetary units ''. Retrieved 16 November 2008. Jump up ^ `` Ireland to round to nearest 5 cents starting October 28 ''. 27 October 2015. Jump up ^ `` Rounding ''. Central Bank of Ireland. Jump up ^ European Commission ( January 2007 ). `` Euro cash : five and familiar ''. Europa. Retrieved 26 January 2009. Jump up ^ Pop, Valentina ( 22 March 2010 ) `` Commission frowns on shop signs that say : ' € 500 notes not accepted ' '', EU Observer Jump up ^ European Commission ( 15 February 2003 ). `` Commission communication : The introduction of euro banknotes and coins one year after COM ( 2002 ) 747 ''. Europa ( web portal ). Retrieved 26 January 2009. Jump up ^ `` Robert Kalina, designer of the euro banknotes, at work at the Oesterreichische Nationalbank in Vienna ''. European Central Bank. Retrieved 30 May 2010. Jump up ^ Schmid, John ( 3 August 2001 ). `` Etching the Notes of a New European Identity ''. International Herald Tribune. Retrieved 29 May 2009. 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Tomé e Princípe ancora - se ao euro ''. economia.publico.pt. 27 July 2009. Retrieved 8 November 2011. Jump up ^ https://www.orderofmalta.int/associate-countries/ Retrieved 3 October 2017. Jump up ^ A Plan for a European Currency, 1973 by Mundell Jump up ^ `` The Breakup of the Euro Area by Barry Eichengreen ''. 14 September 2007. SSRN 1014341. NBER Working Paper No. w13393. Jump up ^ `` Greek debt crisis : Straw says eurozone ' will collapse ' ''. BBC. 20 June 2011. Retrieved 17 July 2011. Jump up ^ John Lanchester, `` Euro Science, '' New Yorker, 10 October 2011. Jump up ^ `` Triennial Central Bank Survey Foreign exchange turnover in April 2016 '' ( PDF ). Triennial Central Bank Survey. Basel, Switzerland : Bank for International Settlements. 11 December 2016. p. 7. Retrieved 22 March 2017. Jump up ^ Benchimol, J., 2014. Risk aversion in the Eurozone, Research in Economics, vol. 68, issue 1, pp. 39 -- 56. Jump up ^ `` Market Integration and Convergence to the Law of One Price : Evidence from the European Car Market ''. Nber.org. Retrieved 5 January 2009. Jump up ^ de Haan, Jakob ( 2000 ). The History of the Bundesbank : Lessons for the European Central Bank. London : Routledge. ISBN 978 - 0 - 415 - 21723 - 1. Retrieved 24 July 2009. Jump up ^ Silvia, Steven J ( 2004 ). `` Is the Euro Working ? The Euro and European Labour Markets ''. Journal of Public Policy. 24 ( 2 ) : 147 -- 168. doi : 10.1017 / s0143814x0400008x. JSTOR 4007858. Jump up ^ `` The euro 's trade effects '' ( PDF ). Retrieved 2 October 2009. Jump up ^ `` The Euro Effect on Trade is not as Large as Commonly Thought '' ( PDF ). Archived from the original ( PDF ) on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 2 October 2009. Jump up ^ `` SSRN - Estimating the Euro Effects on Trade with Propensity Score Matching by Pandej Chintrakarn ''. Review of International Economics. 16 ( 1 ) : 186 -- 198. February 2008. SSRN 1079383. 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Jump up ^ Kshitij Consultancy Services. `` Euro monthly Chart with Moving Average and Momentum : Graph Gallery ''. Kshitij. Retrieved 2014 - 02 - 01. Jump up ^ `` European Central Bank, Convergence Report '' ( PDF ). May 2007. Retrieved 29 December 2008. The euro is the single currency of the member states that have adopted it. To make this singleness apparent, Community law requires a single spelling of the word euro in the nominative singular case in all community and national legislative provisions, taking into account the existence of different alphabets. Jump up ^ Elena Koinova ( 19 October 2007 ). `` '' Evro '' Dispute Over -- Portuguese Foreign Minister -- Bulgaria ``. The Sofia Echo. Retrieved 17 July 2011. Jump up ^ European Commission. `` Spelling of the words `` euro '' and `` cent '' in official community languages as used in community legislative acts '' ( PDF ). Retrieved 12 January 2009. Jump up ^ For example, see European Commission, Directorate General for Translation : English Style Guide section 22.9 `` The euro. Like ' pound ', ' dollar ' or any other currency name in English, the word ' euro ' is written in lower case with no initial capital and, where appropriate, takes the plural ' s ' ( as does ' cent ' ). '' European Commission Directorate - General for Translation -- English Style Guide Archived 5 December 2010 at the Wayback Machine... Further reading Bartram, Söhnke M. ; Taylor, Stephen J. ; Wang, Yaw - Huei ( May 2007 ). `` The Euro and European Financial Market Dependence ''. Journal of Banking and Finance. 51 ( 5 ) : 1461 -- 1481. SSRN 924333. Bartram, Söhnke M. ; Karolyi, G. Andrew ( October 2006 ). `` The Impact of the Introduction of the Euro on Foreign Exchange Rate Risk Exposures ''. Journal of Empirical Finance. 13 ( 4 -- 5 ) : 519 -- 549. doi : 10.1016 / j. jempfin. 2006.01. 002. SSRN 299641. Baldwin, Richard ; Wyplosz, Charles ( 2004 ). The Economics of European Integration. New York : McGraw Hill. ISBN 0 - 07 - 710394 - 7. Buti, Marco ; Deroose, Servaas ; Gaspar, Vitor ; Nogueira Martins, João ( 2010 ). The Euro. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978 - 92 - 79 - 09842 - 0. Jordan, Helmuth ( 2010 ). `` Fehlschlag Euro ''. Dorrance Publishing. Simonazzi, A. ; Vianello, F. ( 2001 ). `` Financial Liberalization, the European Single Currency and the Problem of Unemployment ''. In Franzini, R. ; Pizzuti, R.F. Globalization, Institutions and Social Cohesion. Springer. ISBN 3 - 540 - 67741 - 0. 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Question: when was the euro introduced as legal currency on the world market
Answer: 16 December 1995