The year opened with a definitive stride toward unity because of currency.
On 1 January 2025, Caretaker Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev lifted the border barrier at the Kulata crossing, finally erasing the administrative lines distinguishing the country from the rest of Schengen since 2007.
Interior Minister Atanas Ilkov thanked colleagues for their relentless efforts with visible relief that the preparation had ended.
The event fulfilled a promise made upon the European Commission confirming Bulgaria and Romania were ready in 2011, thereby guaranteeing free movement for millions of citizens now able to travel without pause.
A Public Rallying for the Status Quo
Civic energy welcoming open borders soon turned to preserving the familiar lev. Crowds have gathered in thousands since February 2025 to affirm a preference for their current money.
Over 100 gatherings were held across the country during a single weekend in May, and demonstrators in Ruse persisted in demanding the resignation of a government perceived as moving too fast.
Political manoeuvring mirrored the public outcry. President Rumen Radev’s call for a referendum tested constitutional authority regarding international treaties.
The opposition, led by the pro-Russia Revival party which recently signed a cooperation agreement with United Russia, mobilized to gather over 600,000 signatures to channel the pushback.
Surveys confirm a majority holds fast to the present system, with 54.9% of Bulgarians rejecting the proposed change.
Economic Formalities vs. Perceived Sovereignty
Defending the lev protects a currency having quietly tracked the euro’s monetary policy for over two decades.
Governor of the Bulgarian National Bank Dimitar Radev insisted that membership in the ECB Governing Council finally secures Bulgaria a voice in the decisions governing the money it already uses.
The technical course reflects such alignment. The European Commission and ECB secured approval for the transition after confirming Bulgaria met all necessary criteria, leading the Council to adopt the final legal acts locking in the familiar exchange rate.
ECB President Christine Lagarde viewed the common currency as the natural completion of an economy where 65% of exports already flow to the EU.
Furthermore, Minister of Economy Peter Dilov asserted that the switch removes a barrier for businesses, citing one billion levs staying in the economy annually instead of being lost to conversion fees.
The Vulnerability Behind the Skepticism
Resistance grows from the protective instincts of citizens living in financial precarity. Boriana Dimitrova of Alpha Research noted that the vulnerable view the transition through the lens of daily hardship.
With a third of Bulgarians having endured the threat of social exclusion, the promise of macro-economic growth struggles to compete with immediate fears of price instability.
While urban populations may anticipate the ease of travel, people in small towns and rural areas hold fast to the security of the known.
Such anxiety provides fertile ground for narratives implying someone else will decide the financial future or claims widely shared online about foreign interference.
As 2026 nears, Bulgaria celebrates the removal of physical borders while approaching the removal of financial borders with intense scrutiny, looking to the government to prove the integration serves the daily needs of the people.
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