Central bank head: Bulgaria meets criteria for joining euro zone
Since the beginning of 2025, Bulgaria has been consistently meeting the price stability criterion for joining the euro, central Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) governor Dimitar Radev told an April 15 conference held by the American Chamber of Commerce in Bulgaria and the British Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce.
The country’s 2024 budget was implemented within a per cent deficit and in terms of currency stability, debt to GDP and interest rates on long-term securities, “we have traditionally met the criteria, and with a significant positive margin,” Radev said.
The final phase of Bulgaria’s accession process to the euro zone is proceeding relatively smoothly and has the potential to become a counterpoint to the negative effects of global processes, he said.
Radev said that from a logistical and technical preparation perspective, the BNB and the banking sector are fully prepared both for the exchange process and for operation in the euro zone environment.
With the latest amendments to the BNB Act in March, the process of legal convergence was finally completed, he said.
“Especially in the context of global uncertainty, integration into strong unions such as the euro zone takes on even greater importance,” Radev said.
These are profound and multifaceted positive effects – both on competitiveness and on the country’s medium- and long-term economic prospects, he said.
“One of the effects that we expect to manifest in the short term is better accessibility and lower cost of financing for both the public and private sectors.
“The reasons for this are twofold: the expected increase in the country’s credit rating and the reduction in the mandatory minimum reserves of banks,” he said.
More strategically, membership of the euro zone also means greater price and economic stability, as well as greater security – factors of key importance, especially in a complicated geopolitical environment.
All these elements would improve Bulgaria’s attractiveness as an investment destination and create the conditions for accelerated investment activity and higher potential GDP growth, Radev said.
“Therefore, our upcoming accession to the eurozone is not just an important step in our European integration – it is a strategic opportunity to increase the competitiveness and long-term economic potential of the country,” he said.
“Of course, the positive effects in the short and long term will be fully manifested if we pursue a sensible macroeconomic policy, if we restore discipline in budget management and if we implement long-delayed structural reforms aimed at improving human capital, innovation and the institutional environment.”
Finance Minister Temenuzhka Petkova told the conference that Bulgaria has met all the criteria for membership of the euro zone and is awaiting the preparation of extraordinary convergence reports by the European Commission and the European Central Bank.
“We hope that they will be positive in conclusion and will enable Bulgaria to take its rightful place in the euro zone from January 1 2026, because we have come a long way,” Petkova said.
She said that a large volume of technical work has been carried out in order for the administration to fulfill its commitments in connection with the introduction of the single European currency.
“A very serious information campaign on the topic is currently underway.” Petkova said.
‘Both Bulgarian society and Bulgarian business need to hear about the real advantages of adopting the euro in Bulgaria,” she said.
Petkova said that the purpose of the communication activities is to overcome concerns so that everyone can approach this process with confidence, to reorient the activities of companies, and to enable Bulgarian citizens to organize their personal finances in a way that complies with the requirements of the legislation.
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