Banks on Friday started selling starter sets of Slovenian euro coins in a bid to help Slovenians get used to the new currency. One pack costs SIT 3,000 and contains 44 coins of all denominations worth EUR 12.52.
A spokesperson for Slovenia's largest bank, NLB, said there was an "extreme interest" in the starter sets. "I hope we won't run out too quickly," Barbara Smolnikar said. The coins, like banknotes, will enter into use on 1 January 2007, when the euro becomes the official currency in Slovenia. Moreover, the majority of Slovenian banks and Banka Slovenije, Slovenia's central bank, also started selling commemorative coins. A SIT 4,530 (EUR 18.90) pack contains all denominations of coins with Slovenian motifs. The coins are kept in a special casing containing technical data and short explanations of the motifs.