Abstract This article examines the ways in which key emerging market financial elites assess Europe's monetary power in the reconfiguration of the U.S. dollar-dominated monetary system. Interviews with public and private financial actors in China and Brazil record that while Europe's debt markets are limited by their size, and hence the material impact of the euro is restricted, the ideational effects are considerable. The findings show that even if the euro does not appear to be replacing the dollar as the main international currency, the European Monetary Union (EMU) is an example for regional and even world monetary integration. Chinese and Brazilian elites applaud European efforts to create a more multilateral and regulated financial system. In this sense, EMU has significant influence, and hence potential for global reach. However, this study also notes that this projection requires greater political coordination of exchange rate policy in order to fully realise its material impact in global monetary governance.