Banks, EU – Baltic States, Financial Services, Latvia

The starter kits have attracted significant interest of not only local residents, but also of Estonian citizens.

More than 17,000 euro starter kits were sold at SEB banka branches by 4 p.m. yesterday. Besides Riga, the starter kits were also in great demand in Salaspils, Aluksne and Cesis, as the bank's corporate communications manager Kristine Martinsone told Nozare.lv.

Bank Citadele sold more than 13,000 euro starter kits all over Latvia yesterday, the Bank of Latvia branches in Riga and the regions sold about 5,600 kits, and Nordea about 2,000 kits.

The banks have observed that, on the average, a customer usually buys three kits, although there are some who buy just one, and then some who buy five kits.

Swedbank press secretary Kristine Jakubovska said that it was mostly senior citizens who wish to buy the euro starter kits. Also, the kits are bought by quite a few foreigners, most of which are Estonians.

Swedbank reminds that the starter kits' meaning is to acquaint residents with the euro coins. Other than that, they have little practical significance, because all lats will be exchanged for euros next year, and the most convenient way for residents to do this is to have their savings in their bank accounts. The starter kits for legal entities, however, is another matter altogether as companies will need to have cash so they could continue to serve their customers at the beginning of next year.

As reported, the Latvian euro starter kits went on sale in Latvia yesterday – an additional opportunity for anyone to get acquainted with the new circulation coins in a timely manner before the euro changeover day of January 1, 2014.

The starter kit's value is LVL 10 or EUR 14.23, which matches the irreversibly fixed changeover rate, and the kits can be bought at the branches of commercial banks, 302 post offices, as well as the Bank of Latvia and its branches.

The content of the starter kit – two 2-euro, four 1-euro, seven 50 euro cent, eight 20 euro cent, seven 10 euro cent, five 5 euro cent, six 2 euro cent and six 1 euro cent coins.