The euro is the official currency in Ireland. Its ISO code is EUR. The symbol for the euro is €. The euro is now the official currency in 18 European countries. The currency is issued by the European Central Bank. Before the introduction of the euro, after December 31, 2001, the Irish pound (Irish: punt Éireannach, English: Irish pound) was the legal tender. The ISO code was. The Irish pound was the same rate as the British pound.
Background
The introduction of the euro should facilitate trade between the states of the European Union and bind them more to one another. This took place in three steps:
The first began with the establishment of a free movement of capital between the EC states on July 1, 1990.
On January 1, the second phase began with the establishment of the European Monetary Institute, the forerunner of the later European Central Bank. The budgets of the individual member states were then checked.
The third phase began on January 1, 1999 with the establishment of the ECB and the fixing of exchange rates.
Three years later, the euro was introduced as a means of payment in Belgium, Germany, Finland, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal and Spain.
Greece, Slovenia, Malta, Cyprus, Slovakia and Estonia followed in the period from 2001 to 2011. The latest euro member is Latvia, which joined the euro area in January 2014.
The introduction of the single currency brought what felt like inflation in many countries. However, actual records show that the introduction of the euro did not lead to increased inflation in the acceding countries. The euro is viewed with skepticism in many member states, but it has brought advantages in trade that cannot be dismissed.
The individual member states were able to design their euro coins themselves, while there are no differences when it comes to the notes. In Ireland a harp adorns the individual coins.
The euro was able to develop into the most important world reserve currency alongside the dollar. In the course of the banking crisis in 2008, some countries in the euro zone also fell into crisis and became heavily indebted.
This included Ireland, which in 2009 had a national debt of around 105 billion euros. Despite the crises in some countries, the currency managed to remain stable. Ireland was included in the EU rescue package and received aid from the other euro countries. This enabled the country to stabilize.
Many experts see the strength and stability of the euro as a sign that the European currency will eventually replace the dollar as the world’s leading currency.