Biznes Fakty
Euro in Poland. Minister of Finance Andrzej Domański comments
Currently, Poland has no plans to adopt the euro, emphasized Minister of Finance Andrzej Domański. He clarified that the existing situation, with our own currency, is ideal.
– Poland is not presently pursuing entry into the eurozone – stated the head of the Polish Ministry of Finance when questioned about the potential for introducing the shared currency in the nation.
Minister of Finance on the Euro in Poland
Domański led a meeting of his counterparts in Luxembourg on Friday, during which EU finance ministers reached an agreement for Bulgaria to adopt the euro on January 1, 2026.
The Polish minister also remarked: – In my view, this situation is optimal. Poland currently does not fulfill the convergence criteria, thus making this discussion essentially a hypothetical one.
He elaborated that „the macroeconomic conditions in Poland differ from those in (…) Bulgaria”.
– We have one of the highest economic growth rates in the European Union, the lowest unemployment, and increasing investments – he highlighted.
Bulgaria will adopt the euro
On June 4, the European Commission declared that Bulgaria has satisfied the so-called convergence criteria and is eligible to join the eurozone on January 1, 2026. It will then become the 21st EU member state to utilize the common currency.
The decision made by the finance ministers of the member states clears the path for the completion of the legal measures that will allow Bulgaria to introduce the euro by January 2026 at the latest.
Nevertheless, the topic of Bulgaria’s entry into the eurozone will be discussed by the leaders of the member states at a summit next week in Brussels.
The legal process for Bulgaria’s accession to the eurozone will be finalized with the adoption of three legal acts by the member states, intended to be passed in July. This will facilitate Bulgaria’s introduction of the euro into circulation on January 1, 2026.
Eurozone. Rules
The EU member states that remain outside the eurozone include, alongside Poland and (until the end of the year) Bulgaria: Sweden, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, and Denmark.
The convergence criteria include: – price stability (low inflation), – stable public finances (budget deficit below 3% of GDP and public debt below 60% of GDP), – exchange rate stability (participation in the so-called ERM II mechanism, the so-called euro zone waiting room, for at least two years without significant exchange rate fluctuations), – convergence of long-term interest rates (the average nominal long-term interest rate may be higher by a maximum of 2 percentage points compared to the average rates in the three EU countries with the lowest inflation).
On July 10, 2020, Bulgaria joined the ERM II mechanism, which is referred to as the „euro zone waiting room”. Since that time, the Bulgarian lev has been linked to the euro.
