The ECU — European Currency Unit — was never physical tender but a basket currency used for accounting within the European Monetary System from 1979 onward. Austria's decision to issue collector pieces denominated in ECU was partly political positioning ahead of eurozone accession, which came in January 1999, rendering the entire ECU series immediately obsolete. Schubert was chosen for the 1997 issue as part of a broader Austrian commemorative program tied to the composer's 1997 bicentenary of birth.
These silver ECU pieces were legal tender in Austria at face value, though that value was essentially notional from the start.
The ECU — European Currency Unit — was never physical tender but a basket currency used for accounting within the European Monetary System from 1979 onward. Austria's decision to issue collector pieces denominated in ECU was partly political positioning ahead of eurozone accession, which came in January 1999, rendering the entire ECU series immediately obsolete. Schubert was chosen for the 1997 issue as part of a broader Austrian commemorative program tied to the composer's 1997 bicentenary of birth.
These silver ECU pieces were legal tender in Austria at face value, though that value was essentially notional from the start.