This was true of the Baltic States, for example, and also of Slovakia, which, since adopting the euro, has seen its GDP grow each year by around 0.9 percentage points more than its immediate neighbour, the Czech Republic.10 This shows that it is possible to capitalise on the higher trade and investment that come with joining the euro area.11 And the process of adopting the euro has itself evolved.
In particular, any country that wishes to join the euro area must now be sufficiently ready not only for the single currency, but also for the banking union.