Minting of Croatian euro coins begins

The minting of Croatian euro coins began on Monday at the Croatian Mint in Sveta Nedelja, just west of Zagreb, and Prime Minister Andrej Plenković and the Governor of the Croatian National Bank (HNB) Boris Vujčić attended the opening ceremony.

"We have just seen how euro coins are being manufactured in the Croatian Mint," Plenković told the press after visiting the facility. He added that as of 1 January, Croatia will become a member of the euro area, which means that by then "we need to complete all logistical activities and preparations for replacing the Croatian kuna with the euro, which includes minting coins, as well as the procurement of banknotes by the HNB in agreement with the central banks of other EU member states."

Plenković recalled that in the end it was decided that the Croatian checkerboard will be in the background on two coins, The 2-euro coin will feature a map of Croatia and the 1-euro coin a marten, while the 50, 20 and 10 cents will feature the image of Nikola Tesla, and the 5, 2 and 1 cent coins will bear the letters HR in Glagolitic script. The rim of the 2-euro coin reads "Oh beautiful, oh dear, oh sweet freedom."

"These are all motifs that were ultimately adopted, representing our statehood, our history, our monetary tradition, our recognisability and culture," Plenković said.

He said that it was a well-done process and that with all the activities that would follow, a sufficient amount of money would be ensured for the banks, post offices and the Financial Agency on time and then to all the others just before 1 January next year.

From 1 January there will be a two-week transition with the simultaneous use of kuna and euros, so when someone pays in kuna at a store, their change will be in euros. "We will be fully prepared for that," said Plenković.

Text: Hina

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