Estonia adopted the euro in 2011, becoming the first former Soviet republic to use the currency.
The euro entered circulation in Estonia on 1 January 2011, replacing the kroon at a fixed conversion rate of 15.6466 kroons per euro. Estonia joined the euro area after meeting the European Union’s convergence requirements, including criteria involving inflation, public finances, exchange-rate stability, and interest rates.
Estonia had restored its independence in 1991 and introduced the kroon in 1992. Replacing that national currency with the euro marked a major change in the country’s post-Soviet economic direction.
Estonia’s euro coins carry a map outline of the country. Latvia adopted the euro in 2014 and Lithuania in 2015, completing euro adoption among the Baltic states. The euro’s introduction did not make Estonia a member of the European Union; Estonia had already joined the EU in 2004.