Risks and Potential Benefits of Enlarging the Euro Zone

Logically, the process of enlarging the euro zone, by assimilating the new EU member states, presumes first that the candidate countries meet the nominal criteria of convergence and, second, the actual adoption of the euro. The analysis of euro zone enlargement should reveal the potential costs and benefits of such action, the purpose of such enlargement being a net positive effect both for the new member states, and for the older member states. It is difficult, even impossible, to make an exhaustive analysis of the process; many times, the effects of the enlargement surfacing only after a long period after the adoption of the single currency.