|
 On
January 1, 1999, eleven of the countries in the European Economic
and Monetary Union (EMU) gave up their own currencies and adopted
the new Euro (EUR) currency: Austria, Belgium, Finland, France,
Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal,
and Spain.
Since Euro bank notes and coins
will not likely be printed and circulated until 2002 -- except
for small commemorative issues -- participating countries will
retain their existing currency tokens until that time. However,
the values of participating currency units have been irrevocably
fixed against the new Euro currency by the EMU. The new, official
fixed conversion rates for participating member states ("in countries")
are listed below.
Official
Fixed Euro Rates for Participating Countries
These are the exact official
rates used in conversion. |
| Old "Legacy"
Currency |
Conversion to
Euro |
Conversion from
Euro |
| ATS Austria,
Schilling |
ATS / 13.7603 = EUR |
EUR × 13.7603 = ATS |
| BEF Belgium,
Franc |
BEF / 40.3399 = EUR |
EUR × 40.3399 = BEF |
| FIM Finland,
Markka |
FIM / 5.94573 = EUR |
EUR × 5.94573 = FIM |
| DEM Germany,
Deutsche Mark |
DEM / 1.95583 = EUR |
EUR × 1.95583 = DEM |
| FRF France, Franc |
FRF / 6.55957 = EUR |
EUR × 6.55957 = FRF |
| IEP Ireland,
Punt |
IEP / 0.787564 = EUR |
EUR × 0.787564 = IEP |
| ITL Italy, Lira |
ITL / 1936.27 = EUR |
EUR × 1936.27 = ITL |
| LUF Luxembourg,
Franc |
LUF / 40.3399 = EUR |
EUR × 40.3399 = LUF |
| NLG The Netherlands,
Dutch Guilder |
NLG / 2.20371 = EUR |
EUR × 2.20371 = NLG |
| PTE Portugal,
Escudo |
PTE / 200.482 = EUR |
EUR × 200.482 = PTE |
| ESP Spain, Peseta |
ESP / 166.386 = EUR |
EUR × 166.386 = ESP |
The Euro is not just the
same thing as the former European Currency Unit, which used to
be listed on currency as "XEU". The ECU was a theoretical "basket"
of currencies rather than a currency in and of itself, and no
"ECU" bank notes or coins ever existed. Please remember that
the ECU no longer exists. It has been replaced by the Euro, which
is a bona fide currency.
Even though the Euro has effectively
superseded its 11 member currencies, it will continue to be listed
on many currency services until the complete inception of the
Euro in 2002. However, their values will be fixed against the
Euro and you will always be able to calculate their values against
the Euro using the values in the above table.
For more information, we encourage
you to visit the Websites listed below, particularly the official
one. These sites include recent news on the Euro as well as issues
regarding its implementation.
Answers to Common Questions
Relevant Links
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