Bulgarian MPs amend central bank law as euro zone preparation
Bulgaria’s National Assembly passed at second reading on February 1 a bill amending the Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) Act in preparation of the country joining the euro area.
Although Bulgaria is yet to have a firm date for when it will joining the common European currency, having its legislation comply with euro zone requirements is one of the pre-requisites, known as the Maastricht criteria, before such a decision can be taken.
The changes affect the legal integration of the Bulgarian central bank into the euro zone, matters pertaining to the statute of the euro as the country’s currency and the design of Bulgaria’s euro coins, but not the rules on appointing the senior officials at the central bank.
The amendments have no set date for going into effect, as the bill stipulates that changes will go into force on the day it actually joins the euro area.
Recent governments have made joining the euro zone a priority policy area, initially hoping to adopt the euro in January 2024, but high inflation over the past year and a half and other legal issues have pushed back the prospective date of euro adoption.
January 2025 is seen as the earliest possible date now, provided the Eurogroup of euro zone finance ministers agree to be lenient in applying the inflation criterion, the same way they did when Croatia adopted the euro in 2023.
A decision regarding Bulgaria’s accession to the euro area is expected later this year.
(Bulgarian National Assembly photo: parliament.bg)
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