The German mark was the official currency of West Germany from 1948 until Germany united in 1990 and became the official currency of the united Germany from 1990 until the euro was adopted as the official currency of Germany in 2002 and issued the mark in 1948 when Germany was under the occupation of the Allies instead of the German Reich In 1998 the European Central Bank announced the stabilization of the euro against the German mark at 1.95583 Mark, and the German mark was the fourth largest reserve currency.