Bulgaria Adopts Euro Amid Fear And Uncertainty
Source: Barrons/AFP
Dec 28, 2025, 2:21 am EST
Bulgaria will become the 21st country to adopt the euro on Thursday, but some believe the move could bring higher prices and add to instability in the European Union's poorest country. A protest campaign emerged this year to "keep the Bulgarian lev", playing on public fears of price rises and a generally negative view of the euro among much of the population.
But successive governments have pushed to join the eurozone and supporters insist it will boost the economy, reinforce ties to the West and protect against Russia's influence.
The single currency first rolled out in 12 countries on January 1, 2002, and has since regularly extended its influence, with Croatia the last country to join in 2023. But Bulgaria faces unique challenges, including anti-corruption protests that recently swept a conservative-led government from office, leaving the country on the verge of its eighth election in five years.
Boryana Dimitrova of the Alpha Research polling institute, which has tracked public opinion on the euro for a year, told AFP any problems with euro adoption would be seized on by anti-EU politicians. Any issues will become "part of the political campaign, which creates a basis for rhetoric directed against the EU", she said.
Read more: https://www.barrons.com/news/bulgaria-adopts-euro-amid-fear-and-uncertainty-1c13bed4?refsec=topics_afp-news
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