Euro
The euro is the official currency of 19 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is the second-most traded currency in the world after the United States dollar. The euro is subdivided into 100 cents. It is the currency used by the institutions of the European Union and is the official currency of the eurozone, which consists of 19 of the 28 member states of the European Union: Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Spain.
History of the Euro
The euro was introduced in 1999 as an accounting currency, replacing the European Currency Unit (ECU). Physical euro coins and banknotes entered into circulation in 2002. 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 euro is the result of the European Union’s project for economic and monetary union, as laid out in the Maastricht Treaty, which entered into force in 1993. The monetary authority of the eurozone is the Eurosystem, which consists of the European Central Bank and the national central banks of the 19 member states that have adopted the euro.
Comparisons
| Currency | Symbol | ISO Code |
|---|---|---|
| Euro | € | EUR |
| US Dollar | $ | USD |
| British Pound | £ | GBP |
| Japanese Yen | ¥ | JPY |
Summary
The euro is the official currency of 19 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is the second-most traded currency in the world after the United States dollar. 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). For more information about the euro, you can visit the European Central Bank website or the European Commission website.
See Also
- European Central Bank
- European Commission
- European Currency Unit
- Maastricht Treaty
- Eurozone
- Exchange Rate
- Currency Exchange
- Foreign Exchange Market
- International Monetary Fund
- World Bank
