NEW COINS MARK EURO ANNIVERSARY

To celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the Euro, France recently updated the obverse of the €1 and €2 coins, replacing the original ‘Tree of Life’ design with an updated version, again created by engraver Joaquin Jiménez.

The new €20 anniversary coin features both designs, thus showing the evolution of France Euro design over the years. The commemorative coin features an olive branch in the hollow of the ‘2’, which is described as a ‘natural and numismatic symbol that has accompanied the 1 franc coins since the monetary reform of the Fifth Republic.’ Whilst the ‘0’ is represented as a €2 coin, split in two between the original design by Joaquin Jiménez dating from 1999 and the new national obverse put into circulation in January 2022.

The Euro was introduced by the signatory states of the Maastricht Treaty on 7 February 1992. Officially put into circulation at midnight on 1 January 2002, the new currency saw many familiar currencies replaced, including France’s franc.

The €20 coin is available in uncirculated condition with a composition of 900/1000 silver. A €100 version of the coin has also been released but has already sold out on the Monnaie De Paris website.

Meanwhile, the European Central Bank (ECB) recently revealed that they are considering the introduction of a digital version of the Euro. A statement from the ECB explained: ‘We will investigate how a digital Euro could offer a convenient, cost-free means of payment, allowing people to pay anywhere in the Euro area with risk-free digital money - for example, when making payments online, which preclude the use of cash… In any event, a digital Euro would complement cash, not replace it.’

The bank has also launched the process of redesigning the Euro banknotes, with the new designs set to be rolled out in 2024.