Today, in nineteen European countries, the euro is used as the official currency. This currency was put into circulation in countries that formed a common political and economic alliance - the European Union (EU). In these states, the official currency is only the euro. The history of the exchange rate of this currency in relation to other banknotes knows both periods of stability and moments of instability.
Euro introduction history
Before the creation of the EU integration union, each of the European states itself issued money and determined its own currency exchange rate. Such an order significantly slowed down cooperation between countries and made settlement operations more complicated. The prototype of the common currency was the ECU (English European Currency Unit, ECU), which was used between 1979 and 1998. This monetary unit took part in the process of settlements in non-cash form, and was also used in the issue of government loans and bonds.
From 1999 to 2002 in the European community there was a simultaneous use of national currency units and the common currency of the euro, the history of the exchange rate of which dates back to January 1999. Since February 2002, the euro has become the exclusive payment tool in many European countries. The history of the course, the issue of paper notes and metal coins from that moment were within the purview of the European Central Bank. These countries initially included Germany, France, Italy, Austria and the Netherlands. In addition, the new banknote was immediately put into circulation in Portugal, Belgium, Spain, Ireland, Luxembourg and Finland.
Other countries of the European Union got the opportunity to switch to common currency calculations a little later. To do this, they needed to fulfill the terms of the Maastricht agreement. The Baltic states were among the last to enter the zone of using the common currency. So, Estonia introduced it in 2011, Latvia in 2014, and Lithuania in 2015. On the territory of such countries as Cyprus and Malta, Slovakia and Slovenia, as well as Greece, the euro began to be used a little earlier.
Euro to Russian Ruble history
The highest euro ever recorded was recorded on January 22, 2016. On this day, quotes against the Russian ruble amounted to 1 to 91.1814. The history of the euro against the ruble also consists of a period of relative stability. For example, on October 28, 2008, these quotes were at the level of 1 to 34.0844. This is the lowest euro / ruble exchange rate in history. The average ratio of the European currency and the Russian ruble for the indicated period is 1 to 46.6238.
The official introduction of the euro into circulation
The launch of the euro into circulation and use took place in stages. So, first the currency was entered into cashless payments and only subsequently there was an issue of paper banknotes and metal coins.
The official day of the beginning of the use of a common currency is the first day of 1999. On January 1, at midnight European time, states that are members of the European Economic and Monetary Union, or EMU, switched to using common new money - the euro. The history of the exchange rate of this currency begins at this moment.
The national banknotes of the states that were part of the aforementioned union were tightly tied to the euro, which is becoming an independent and full payment instrument. At that time, new money and national banknotes were used simultaneously. The first foreign exchange trading with the participation of the euro was held on January 4, 1999.
Quotes of national currencies and euros for conversion
During those trades, the ratio of some national currencies to the new common monetary unit was established. So, for conversion, one euro was valued at 1.956 German marks, 6.660 French francs, 5.946 Finnish marks, 0.788 Irish pounds. In addition, quotes were valid for other currencies: 1 € = 1936.21 Italian lire, 1 € = 166.39 Spanish pesetas, 1 € = 200.48 Portuguese escudos, 1 € = 40.34 Belgian-Luxembourgish francs, 1 € = 2,204 Dutch guilders and 1 € = 13,760 Austrian shillings.
The euro, whose history has been stable over many years against major world currencies, has been losing ground recently. Today, there is a tendency to strengthen the US dollar against the common European currency.