Countries using the euro

30 years to the euro

The history of the euro starts with its initial planning as early as 1970, but it was repeatedly rejected or postponed due to many economic difficulties. The first major step was taken in 1979 with a European Monetary System, which was intended to cushion currency fluctuations among countries. The predecessor of the euro was the ECU, which was only available as book money. More than 10 years later, the EC states agreed on free movement of capital and it was not until 1994 that a common European Monetary Institute was founded, which was replaced by the European Central Bank (ECB) in 1999. This gave rise to the European Monetary Union.

EU countries without the euro

The euro is not legal tender throughout the European Union. Currently, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Sweden still have their own currency, but are members of the EU.

The euro outside the European Union

The euro is an official currency not only within the EU. It is also used outside. Not surprisingly, the microstates of Andorra, Monaco, San Marino and Vatican City also use the euro. They are surrounded by other euro countries and their size and dependence would cause unnecessary economic disadvantages. All four smallest states even have their own euro coins. The Non-EU countries Kosovo and Montenegro also use the euro, but without their own coins.

In Central Europe, there are only a few countries with their own independent currency. In Denmark, payment is made with the Danish crown, but the crown is linked to the euro with a fixed exchange rate. One Euro corresponds to about 7.46 kroner. Switzerland and Great Britain go their own way.

But even far away from the European continent, the euro is considered an official currency. This is mainly thanks to the French, who have introduced it in their overseas territories. These include St. Pierre and Miquelon in the north of the Americas, the Caribbean countries of Guadeloupe, Martinique, Saint Bartholomew, Saint Martin and the islands of Mayotte and Réunion in the Indian Ocean. France is the only country that applies its own means of payment with this intensity to its overseas territories. In addition, several countries have a national "franc," whichis linked to the euro at a fixed conversion rate.

Sources

All conversion rates are based on data from the European Central Bank.
Data on currency and gold reserves are from the International Monetary Fund.