15 Euro (Konstantin Konik) – Estonia

In 2023, Estonia remained a full and integrated member of the Eurozone, having adopted the euro as its sole official currency in 2011. The country's monetary policy was therefore set by the European Central Bank (ECB), which was engaged in a sustained effort to combat high inflation across the Eurozone. Throughout the year, Estonia experienced the direct impact of the ECB's consecutive interest rate hikes, which aimed to cool the economy and bring down price pressures. This shared currency framework provided stability and eliminated exchange rate risk within the bloc, but also meant Estonia had no independent monetary tools to address its specific economic conditions.

Domestically, the primary currency-related challenge was persistently high inflation, which, though easing from its 2022 peak, remained among the highest in the Eurozone. This was driven by strong wage growth, high energy prices, and underlying structural factors in the Baltic economies. The national conversation around currency therefore focused less on the euro itself and more on its consequences: the cost-of-living crisis, the competitiveness of Estonian exports, and the economic slowdown induced by the ECB's tight monetary policy. The government relied on fiscal policy measures to mitigate the effects on vulnerable households.

Looking forward, the digital euro project remained a topic of strategic discussion within Estonian financial and tech circles, aligning with the country's strong digital identity. However, 2023 did not see any significant moves toward alternative currencies or changes to the euro framework. The consensus in Estonia continued to favor euro membership as a cornerstone of economic security and European integration, despite the short-term pain of inflation and higher borrowing costs. The currency situation was thus characterized by stable institutional integration coupled with significant economic pressures shared across the monetary union.