The euro is the official currency in Cyprus. The currency abbreviation according to ISO 4217 is EUR. The symbol for the euro is €. The euro was only introduced after December 31, 2007. Before the introduction of the euro, the Cyprus pound, ISO code CYP, was legal tender. The Cyprus pound was pegged 1: 1 to the British pound.
The euro is the official currency in all countries of the European Monetary Union, as well as Andorra, Kosovo, Monaco, Montenegro, San Marino and Vatican City. The euro countries currently include Belgium, Germany, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Cyprus.
Introduction of the euro
The euro has existed as book money since 1999. This means that although transactions could be carried out in this currency, the euro was not yet an official means of payment at the time.
On January 1, 2002, the euro was introduced as legal tender in the then member countries of the European Monetary Union.
The external value of the euro to other currencies has been quite stable since it was founded. The aim of the European Central Bank, which is primarily responsible for the euro, is an inflation level of close to but below 2 percent.
With the outbreak of the so-called euro crisis in 2009, economic problems within the euro zone became apparent. However, the external value of the currency was not significantly affected. Above all, there are domestic challenges that need to be solved.
Cyprus was, or is, also affected. Due to the fact that the Cypriot economy is closely intertwined with the Greek financial system, it has repeatedly been gripped by the problems there.
In 2013 the crisis reached its peak. Since the Cypriot government wanted to receive an aid package worth 10 billion euros, it had to collect a compulsory levy on bank deposits in return.
In order to prevent a large-scale outflow of deposits, the government worked with the ECB to ensure that no major transactions could be carried out. Ultimately, the contracting parties agreed that only certain bank customers with a larger deposit volume would be affected by a compulsory levy.
Since the euro is accepted as an official means of payment in many European countries, there is often no need to exchange currency. This is also the case when traveling from Germany to Cyprus. For travelers outside the euro zone, the question often arises as to where the euro should be exchanged for the respective national currency.
Still in your home country or at your travel destination? Basically, a certain amount of the foreign currency should be carried. Otherwise, the exchange is usually cheaper in the travel destination.