Legal Definitions - European Currency Unit

The European Currency Unit (ECU) was a monetary unit that was used by the members of the European Union as their internal accounting unit. It was created in 1979 and was the precursor of the euro. The ECU was an artificial currency that was used to measure the value of different currencies in the European Union.

For example, if a company in France wanted to buy goods from a company in Germany, they would use the ECU to measure the value of the goods. This made it easier for companies to do business across different countries in the European Union.

The ECU ceased to exist in January 1999 when it was replaced by the euro. The euro is now the official currency of the European Union and is used by 19 of the 27 member states.