site.btaCentral Bank Governing Council Member Lingorski Says Euro Switch Goes as Planned

Bulgaria’s switch to the euro on January 1, 2026 went smoothly, Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) Governing Council member Iliya Lingorski said on Saturday. In an appearance on Bulgarian National Television, Lingorski said payment systems and POS terminals were working steadily.

“This comes after extensive preparation over days, weeks, and months leading up to January 1, involving many people and extensive testing with the Bulgarian National Bank and the commercial banks. We can see that everything is operating normally,” Lingorski said. “My impression is that most of the transition went smoothly and as expected, perhaps even better than expected, during the first two days after New Year,” he added.

Lingorski noted that in December alone, the final month of the previous year, more than BGN 4.4 billion in banknotes were withdrawn from circulation. Over the past six months, the total exceeded BGN 10 billion, and in the last two business days between Christmas and New Year’s, more than BGN 1 billion in cash left circulation.

He noted that Bulgaria’s banking sector was highly competitive and very liquid, suggesting no abrupt changes in retail deposit and lending rates. He added that Bulgaria’s accession to the euro area altered the way interest rates are determined and said that, by exiting the currency board regime, Bulgaria was moving toward an independent central banking framework.

“Our banking sector is not only highly capitalized and liquid; its liquidity also rose sharply from January 1, as a large share of the previous minimum reserve requirements was released (reduced from 12% to 1%). In addition, banks now have access to the balance sheet of the European Central Bank and the wider Eurosystem.”