A company that specialises in anti-counterfeiting technology claims Europe’s common currency infringes on a patent obtained from a New York inventor’s family.

A man stole a small plane at gunpoint then threatened to crash it into the European Central Bank in Frankfurt, sparking panic in the German financial capital.

European Central Bank President Wim Duisenberg today said he will step down in 2003 - before his term is completed.

A third of the countries gearing up for euro cash have opted out of printing large denomination notes, saying the big bills are too unwieldy for citizens used to more meagre pocket change.