2010 - Öre abolished as unit of coinage

The last Swedish öre coin, the 50-öre, ceased to be valid. This meant that the 1-krona became the lowest coin denomination, but the öre remained as an arithmetical unit. 

Electronic payments made, for instance, by card were not affected by the withdrawal of the 50-öre coin. Cash payments, however, were rounded to the nearest krona.

The word öre comes from the Latin aereus/aurum, meaning golden/gold, and was used in olden days as a unit of account across Scandinavia. As a coin, the first öre was struck in Sweden in 1522, when it was a silver coin weighing 1.37 grams. Öre coins ceased to be minted in 1778 in conjunction with the currency reform of 1776.

The öre reappeared in conjunction with Oscar II’s currency reform of 1873, when the present coinage system of kronor and öre was introduced.