Paying with a single currency in daily transactions throughout the euro area can be regarded as an achievement of historic proportions and as a major step in the process of European integration.
The Eurosystem, the ECB and the 12 national central banks (NCBs) of the euro area as well as all other parties involved were quite confident – although of course not 100% certain – that the euro cash changeover would be a success, given the enormous efforts and preparations which went into this unprecedented operation.