Bulgarian National Bank
Bulgarian National Bank headquarters in Sofia | |
| Headquarters | Sofia |
|---|---|
| Established | 25 January 1879 |
| Ownership | 100% state ownership |
| Governor | Dimitar Radev |
| Central bank of | Bulgaria |
| Currency | Euro EUR (ISO 4217) |
| Reserves | US$19.9 billion |
| Succeeded by | European Central Bank (2026)1 |
| Website | bnb.bg |
| 1 The Bulgarian national bank still exists but many functions have been taken over by the ECB | |
The Bulgarian National Bank (Bulgarian: Българска народна банка, romanized: Bulgarska narodna banka, IPA: [ˈbɤɫɡɐrskɐ nɐˈrɔdnɐ ˈbaŋkɐ], BNB) is the central bank for Bulgaria within the Eurosystem. Before the country adopted the euro on 1 January 2026, it was responsible for issuing the former national currency, the lev.
Headquartered in Sofia, the bank was established in 1879. It is the 13th-oldest continuously existing central bank in the world. The bank has a key role in the Bulgarian economy. An independent institution responsible for issuing all banknotes and coins in the country, BNB is tasked with safekeeping the government's currency reserves. It is also the sole owner of the Bulgarian Mint.
In addition to its monetary role, the BNB is also a financial supervisory authority. In that capacity, it increasingly implements policies set at the European Union level. It has been the national competent authority for Bulgaria within European Banking Supervision since 2020. It is a voting member of the Board of Supervisors of the European Banking Authority (EBA). It is Bulgaria's designated National Resolution Authority and plenary session member of the Single Resolution Board (SRB). It provides the permanent single common representative for Bulgaria in the Supervisory composition of the General Board of the Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA). It is also a member of the European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB).