-IThe entry of eleven countries into Stage Three of European monetary union on January 1, 1999 has introduced a new era of monetary policy in Europe. Germany is one of the initial participants and has, since the beginning of the year, subordinated itself – abdicating a sovereign right in the process – to the single monetary policy of a supranational central bank.
In the following, I will look at the opportunities as well as the problems and risks of monetary union from the German point of view, and especially from the point of view of the Bundesbank. - II The decision to participate in European monetary union was especially difficult for Germany.