site.btaBNB Governor: Euro Is Not Just Economic Solution or Currency - It is Sign of Belonging

In an address to the nation on Wednesday hours before the planned introduction of the euro in Bulgaria, Bulgarian National Bank Governor Dimitar Radev said that "the euro is not just an economic solution, not merely a currency - it is a sign of belonging: that your place is not on the periphery, but in a space of shared rules, trust, and responsibility." He also described it as "a sign that the effort you have made has been recognized and accepted."

"The Bulgarian lev has always been more than money. Its name comes from the lion - a symbol that has accompanied Bulgarian statehood for centuries," Radev recalled.

"The lev remains part of our history and the memory of generations of Bulgarians. No one is taking it away. It simply takes its place in the story of our country, alongside the marks, francs, and lira of other European peoples," he noted.

In Radev's words, the euro does not interrupt this story but continues it.

"The Bulgarian letters, the images of the Madara Horseman, Saint Ivan of Rila, and Paisius of Hilendar on European currency clearly state: we do not give up on ourselves. We declare who we are," the BNB Governor said.

The inscription "God Protect Bulgaria" on the newest European coins speaks for itself, he said, emphasizing that Bulgaria is Europe, and Europe is Bulgaria.