On December 15 and 16, 1995 members of the European Council met together to discuss their plans for introducing a standardized currency to their countries. A decision that started with the Treaty of Paris, signed in 1951 after the Second World War, the European Council agreed to roll out the new currency between the years of 1999 and 2002.
In the aftermath of WWII, European nations were eager to ensure that the economic devastation that affected Germany after WWI would not repeat itself after WWII. They felt that the best course of action was to act together, getting rid of trade customs between their countries and uniting the production of common materials such as coal and steel. In the 70s, it was suggested that a common currency would provide further economic stability. In 1992, the Maastricht Treaty was signed, which officially formed the European Union and outlined plans for the introduction of a common currency.
When the European Council met in 1995, they wrote that during their meetings the council “adopted the scenario for the changeover to the single currency, confirming unequivocally that this stage will commence on 1 January 1999.” They also chose a name for the currency. Their criteria were that “the name of the currency must be the same in all the official languages of the European Union, taking into account the existence of different alphabets; it must be simple and symbolize Europe.” The name “Euro” was suggested by Belgian professor, Germain Pirlot and was adopted by the council. The European Council made plans to introduce the currency in stages. On January 1, 1999, the Euro began to be used for electronic banking and transfers. In 2002, they began circulating the paper bills and coins. Today, 20 European Union countries use the Euro.
Learn more here:
- https://www.europarl.europa.eu/summits/mad1_en.htm#emu
- https://www.politico.eu/article/15-16-december-european-council-madrid/
- https://www.history.com/news/euro-currency-adoption