Romania’s central bank BNR has announced it will stop publishing the exchange rate of the Bulgarian lev against the Romanian leu starting January 5, 2026, following Bulgaria’s adoption of the euro.

In a statement, BNR said the decision comes as Bulgaria will officially join the eurozone and adopt the euro as its national currency on January 1, 2026. As a result, the Bulgarian lev (BGN) will no longer be in circulation, making the exchange rate listing unnecessary. 

The central bank noted that the conversion rate set by the Council of the European Union is EUR 1 equal to BGN 1.95583.

Bulgaria will become the 21st member of the eurozone, a move seen by European and Bulgarian officials as a step toward strengthening the country’s economy and reinforcing its pro-European direction, according to The Guardian.

Romania, meanwhile, has not yet set a new target date for adopting the euro. Back in August, National Bank governor Mugur Isărescu said Romania met the technical criteria for joining the eurozone between 2013 and 2015, but later abandoned the timeline after failing to maintain fiscal targets, Digi24 reported. He added that discussions on euro adoption could resume in five to seven years.

irina.marica@romania-insider.com

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