Euro Group - History

History

The Eurogroup, formerly known as the Euro-X and Euro-XI in relation to the number of states adopting the euro, was established at the request of France as a policy co-ordination and consultation forum on eurozone matters. The December 1997 European Council endorsed its creation and the first meeting was held on 4 June 1998 at the Chateau de Senningen in Luxembourg .

To begin with, the chair of the Eurogroup mirrored that of the rotating Council presidency, except where the Council presidency was held by a non-eurozone country, in which case the chair was held by the next eurozone country that would hold the Council presidency. In 2004 the ministers decided to elect a president (see "President" below for details) and in 2008, the group held a summit of heads of state and government, rather than finance ministers, for the first time. This became known as the Euro summit and has had irregular meetings during the financial crisis. In March 2013 the Eurogroup along with the IMF developed the terms for the imposition of a bank levy on all bank accounts in Cyprus. This negotiation, which began as a condition for a 10 billion euro loan to bail out 2 Cyprus banks, led to one of the most controversial developments in banking over the past one hundred years, government confiscation of depositors assets- without notice or the opportunity to democratically consider and pass legislation supporting the confiscation. The Eurogroup appears to have assumed official status as an operating unit of the EU.

Since the beginning of the monetary union, its role has grown in regards to the euro's economic governance. The fact the group meets just before the Ecofin council means it can pre-agree all Ecofn's decisions that on Eurozone affairs. In 2009 the Lisbon Treaty formalised the group and its president.