The people in the UK have voted to leave the European Union (the EU).
The European Union is a group of 28 countries in Europe that have agreed to co-operate—to all become one group, in many ways. For instance, people in European Union countries can travel, live and work easily in any other EU country. And businesses that are in the European Union can send products back and forth more easily. Nineteen of the EU countries all use the same money–the Euro.
On Thursday, June 23 there was a very important vote.
Tag: Euro
“Bitcoin” Is A New Type Of Money
Bitcoin sounds like what it is–a type of money.
But it’s a special kind of money that could not exist without the Internet. It is digital and virtual; people can’t carry it around in their pockets or keep it in a bank.
Despite these differences from traditional money, there are places around the world that are starting to accept bitcoins to pay for things.
Some restaurants and shops in New York and San Francisco accept bitcoins, and so does WordPress, a blogging website.
A man in Alberta is offering to sell his house for bitcoins instead of Canadian dollars.
Bitcoins have been around for a few years but are becoming more popular.
Cyprus The Latest Country To Get A Bailout
Cyprus is the latest country to require a financial “bailout” from other European countries to keep its banks and economy from collapsing.
Like Greece, which was bailed out of an economic crisis last year, Cyprus is one of 17 countries in Europe that uses a type of currency, or money, called the Euro.
The problems for Cyprus began with the country’s banks, which loaned money to people who didn’t pay it back. Governments of other countries that use the Euro became nervous that Cyprus banks would fail if they were re-paid, and that the problems could spread to their countries.
A Plan To Help Eurozone Countries In Debt
Europe’s central bank thinks it has a good plan to help countries like Greece, Spain and Italy. Those countries are struggling because they took on too much debt.
The idea is that the European Central Bank will agree to buy some of the debt.
In return, the troubled countries must agree to spend less money and to put their finances in order.
When countries lend money to other countries, they receive small payments called interest.
When a country borrows too much money, some of the people who lent the money begin to worry that they won’t get their money back. So they demand higher and higher interest payments.
This puts pressure on countries that are already having trouble paying back all the money they borrowed.
It pushes their debt even higher.
More Money Problems For Greece
The debt problem in Greece is causing problems for the country again. And, once again, there is fear these money problems could spread to other countries around the world.
This time, some people in Greece have begun taking all their money out of the country’s banks because they’re worried about what will happen to the value of their money if Greece stops using the euro.
The euro is a currency, like the dollar, and it is used in many countries in Europe.
But Greece has borrowed a lot of money that it is having trouble paying back, and there have been talks about whether Greece should be allowed to keep using the euro.
Greece To Get New €130B Bailout
Greece was in trouble because it took on too much debt.
But other countries have agreed to help Greece by lending the country more than 130-billion euros. Euros (€) are the units of money used in 17 countries in Europe including Greece, France and Germany.
The countries that have agreed to bail Greece out of its money problems are demanding something in return. They are insisting that the government of Greece spend less.
