The Croatian Central Bank (HNB) on Friday awarded the authors of the most successful designs of the Croatian national motifs on future euro coins, and HNB Governor Boris Vujcic said that the changeover from kuna to euro cash would cost over 900 million kuna.

The production of euro banknotes and coins which have to replace the current kuna banknotes and coins will cost more than 900 million kuna. This is quite expensive for the HNB, said the governor at the ceremony at which the authors of the best designs of the Croatian euro coins were awarded 70,000 kuna, while the authors of the second-ranked design were awarded 35,000 kuna and those of third-ranked design 20,000 kuna.

While euro banknotes are the same in all euro-area countries, euro and cent coins carry national motifs of the country that issued them on the national side of the coin.

The Croatian side of the €2 coin will have a geographical map of the Republic of Croatia with the checkerboard motif used as a background. The national side of the €1 coin will contain the motif of the marten animal or the kuna in Croatian, while the image of scientist Nikola Tesla will be used for the coins of 50, 20 and 10 cents. The motif of the Glagolitic script will appear on the national sides of the five, two and one cent.

On 28 January this year, the HNB received a notification from the Council of the EU approving the proposals for the designs of the national sides of euro coins.

After receiving the notification, the Currency Committee unanimously determined the final rank of the three most successful proposals for the design of the Croatian national side of euro and cent coins for every motif from the competition, and at its suggestion the HNB Council made the decision on the final choice of the best design.

The production of euro coins with the Croatian national side can commence following the decision of the Council of the EU on Croatia’s introduction of the euro, the HNB said.

(€1 = 7.52 kuna)