Greek drachma Union collapsed due to World War I. Between 1926 and 1930, a new coinage was introduced for the new Hellenic Republic, consisting of cupro-nickel coins in denominations of 20 lepta, 50 lepta, 1 drachma, and 2 drachmae; nickel coins of 5 drachmae; and silver coins of 10 and 20 drachmae. These were the last coins issued for the first modern drachma, and none were issued for the second. Notes were issued by the National Bank of Greece from 1841 until 2001 when Greece joined the Euro. Early denominations ranged from 10 to 500 drachmae. Smaller denominations (1, 2, 3 and
Euro the highest weighting. With the exception of Bosnia, Bulgaria, Macedonia (which had pegged their currencies against the Deutsche Mark) and Cape Verde (formerly pegged to the Portuguese escudo), all of these non-EU countries had a currency peg to the French Franc before pegging their currencies to the euro. Pegging a country's currency to a major currency is regarded as a safety measure, especially for currencies of areas with weak economies, as the euro is seen as a stable currency, prevents runaway inflation and encourages foreign investment due to its stability. Within the EU several currencies are pegged to the euro,