Euro

What is the euro?

The euro is the official currency of most members of the European Union. (Source: CFTC)

The euro (currency sign: €; banking code: EUR) is the official currency of the European states of Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain - also known as the Eurozone - and is the single currency for more than 317 million people in Europe. Including areas using currencies pegged to the euro, the euro affects more than 480 million people worldwide, with more than €610 billion in circulation as of December 2006.

The euro is not the currency of the European Union as not all EU members have adopted the currency. While all nations which have recently joined the EU are pledged to adopt the euro in due course, the United Kingdom and Denmark are under no such obligation. Several small European states (The Vatican, Monaco, San Marino, and Andorra), although not formally EU members, have adopted the euro due to currency unions with member states.

The euro was introduced to world financial markets as an accounting currency in 1999 and launched as physical coins and banknotes in 2002. All EU member states are eligible to join if they comply with certain monetary requirements.

The euro is managed and administered by the Frankfurt-based European Central Bank (ECB) and the European System of Central Banks (ESCB) (composed of the central banks of its member states). As an independent central bank, the ECB has sole authority to set monetary policy. The ESCB participates in the printing, minting and distribution of notes and coins in all member states, and the operation of the Eurozone payment systems. (Source: Wikipedia)