Euro

The euro (sign: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of the eurozone, which consists of 19 of the 28 member states of the European Union: Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Spain. The currency is also officially used by the institutions of the European Union and four other European countries, as well as unilaterally by two others, and is consequently used daily by some 337 million Europeans as of 2015. Outside of Europe, a number of overseas territories of EU members also use the euro as their currency.

Additionally, 210 million people worldwide as of 2013 use currencies pegged to the euro. The euro is the second largest reserve currency as well as the second most traded currency in the world after the United States dollar.As of August 2014, with more than €995,000,000,000 in circulation, the euro has the highest combined value of banknotes and coins in circulation in the world, having surpassed the U.S. dollar. Based on International Monetary Fund estimates of 2008 GDP and purchasing power parity among the various currencies, the eurozone is the second largest economy in the world.

500 euro note

The five hundred euro note (€500) is the highest-value euro banknote and has been used since the introduction of the euro (in its cash form) in 2002. It is one of the highest value circulating banknotes in the world, worth around 560 USD, 3,400 CNY, 67,000 JPY, 520 CHF or 360 GBP. The note is used in the 23 countries which have the euro as their sole currency (with 22 legally adopting it); with a population of about 332 million.

It is the largest note measuring 160 × 82 mm and has a purple colour scheme. The five hundred euro banknotes depict bridges and arches/doorways in modern architecture (around the late 20th century).

The five hundred euro note contains several complex security features such as watermarks, invisible ink, holograms and microprinting that document its authenticity. In October 2011, there were approximately 594,833,600 five hundred euro banknotes in circulation around the eurozone.

History

The euro was founded on 1 January 1999, when it became the currency of over 300 million people in Europe. For the first three years of its existence it was an invisible currency, only used in accountancy. Euro cash was not introduced until 1 January 2002, when it replaced the national banknotes and coins of the countries in eurozone 12, such as the Luxembourgish franc.

100 euro note

The one hundred euro note (€100) is one of the higher value euro banknotes and has been used since the introduction of the euro (in its cash form) in 2002. The note is used daily by some 332 million Europeans and in the 23 countries which have it as their sole currency (with 22 legally adopting it).

It is the third largest note measuring 147 millimetres (5.8 in) × 82 millimetres (3.2 in) and has a green colour scheme. The hundred euro notes depict bridges and arches/doorways in the Baroque and Rococo style (between the 17th and 18th century).

The hundred euro note contains several complex security features such as watermarks, invisible ink, holograms and microprinting that document its authenticity. In May 2012, there were approximately 1,652,287,100 hundred euro banknotes in circulation in the eurozone.

History

The euro was founded on 1 January 1999, when it became the currency of over 300 million people in Europe. For the first three years of its existence it was an invisible currency, only used in accountancy. Euro cash was not introduced until 1 January 2002, when it replaced the national banknotes and coins of the countries in eurozone 12, such as the French franc and the Spanish peseta.