January 1, 2002 was the dawn of a new era, opening a new chapter in European history as twelve of the countries in the European Union issued their new euro banknotes and coins. It was the culmination of a six year programme to design and print over 14 billion euro banknotes and mint 50 billion euro coins. A mammoth undertaking! Around ten billion banknotes were put into circulation immediately, replacing national banknotes, while the rest were held in reserve to replenish stocks.
| Exchange rates | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
 |
Belgian Franc 40.3399 |
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Deutsche Mark 1.95583 |
|
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Greek Drachma 340.750 |
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Spanish Peseta 166.386 |
||
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French Franc 6.55957 |
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Irish Pound 0.787564 |
||
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Italian Lira 1936.27 |
 |
Luxembourg Franc 40.3399 |
||
 |
Dutch Guilder 2.20371 |
 |
Austrian Schilling 13.7603 |
||
 |
Portuguese Escudo 200.482 |
 |
Finnish Markkaa 5.94573 |
||
 |
Slovenian Tolar 239.640 |
 |
Cypriot Pound 0.585274 |
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 |
Maltese Lira 0.429300 |
 |
Slovakian Koruna 30.126 |
Though they are not members of the EU, Monaco, San Marino and the Vatican City (but not Andorra) also have euro coins featuring a national side. These coins only occasionally end up in general circulation as their scarcity leads to greater interest from coin collectors.
Non-Participating EU countries
Denmark: Obtained an opt-out of joining the euro after voters initially rejected the Maastricht Treaty in a referendum in June 1992. A referendum held in September 2000 to determine whether to join the single currency was rejected by 53 to 47 percent. The Danish government announced in January 2002 that a second referendum on the issue will be held, although no date has yet been set. The Danish currency is still participating in the Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM-2) and is pegged within a 2.25% band against the euro.
Sweden: Joined the EU in 1995 with no opt-out on adopting the euro. The Swedish government announced in January 2002 that it intends to hold a referendum in 2003. The date for the Swedish referendum has now been set as 14th September 2003.
United Kingdom: Negotiated an opt-out of joining the euro in the Maastricht Treaty. The current Labour government is committed to holding a referendum when it determines that the economic conditions for joining are right.
New European Union members
Potential new European Union candidates must, just as the past members, go through a two-year rate of exchange phase first, before they are taken up to the monetary union. This means, that it will take quite a few more years before coin collectors start looking for euro coins from the new participating countries. According to Heinrich Wollny, responsible for European Union extension matter in Brussels, the introduction of the common currency in a member state requires that clear conditions are fulfilled. The preparation on the euro takes place in three phases:
- The pre-entry phase, in which the entry candidate must prove that he made unreversible progress toward a functioning free-market economy and competitive ability, as well as lasting macro-economic stability
- The time between the entry and the adoption of the euro, in which the new member participates in the domestic market. In this phase the candidate country must make progress to fulfill the necessary convergence criteria
- The entrance into the monetary union, provided that the candidate country fulfills the convergence criteria, which apply to all member states. This can happen at the earliest 2 years after the European Union entry, as the candidate country must participate for at least two years in the exchange rate mechanism.
Introduction
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