Albanian currency lek. History of creation, design of coins and banknotes

Albanian currency lek received its name as a result of the reduction of the name of the legendary commander of antiquity of Alexander the Great. Similarly, the people of this country decided to declare to the whole world about their involvement in this outstanding historical personality. Nevertheless, until 1926, the Albanian state did not have its own bank notes. The territory of this country used the currency of Austria-Hungary, France and Italy.

History of appearance

Ahmet Zogu became the first king of Albania, during the reign of which the Albanian national monetary unit entered into circulation. This currency was the gold franc. An interesting fact is that this monetary unit was minted at the mint of Rome. The gold franc was denominated with the help of the Latin letter R. These banknotes were used in Albania until 1947, after which a new Albanian currency, lek, was used in the state, which is still used in the country today.

Design of banknotes

Design Albanian lek banknotes changed several times. Modern type of banknotes purchased in 1996. The emission of a monetary unit is carried out by the Albanian State Bank. Albanian currency one lek includes one hundred kindergartens. But this bargaining chip is not currently in circulation. Banknotes worth two hundred, five hundred, one thousand and five thousand leks are used in purchase and sale transactions. In addition, in circulation there are coins in nominal value one, five, ten, twenty, fifty and one hundred leks. Albanian banknotes depict images of outstanding historical figures who have made a great contribution to the establishment and development of the sovereign Albanian state.

A good example is the largest denomination of five thousand leks. This Albanian currency on the obverse contains the image of the national hero of the nation Georg Castriott of Skanderbeg. The leader of the Albanian people fought for a quarter of a century for the independence of their state from the Ottoman Empire. On a banknote of five hundred leks one can find the image of the first prime minister of the country Ismail Kemal. In addition, significant historical figures are also present on Albanian coins.

Thus, a hundred-lek coin contains an image of the Illyrian Queen Teuta. She, as well as Skanderbeg, fought for the sovereignty of Albania. True, not with the Ottomans, but against the Roman Empire.

It should be emphasized that in 1996, not only the visual appearance of Albanian banknotes was updated, but the entire financial system of the state. So, the famous Austrian "Raiffeisenbank" today has branches and offices in almost any more or less significant settlement of Albania. In addition, it is important to note that in this state, Albanian currency, whose name is lek, and US dollars, and euro, is in free circulation.

The rate of the Albanian monetary unit

The monetary symbols of other states can be freely exchanged for leks in bank branches, exchange offices or hotels. Plastic cards are not accepted at all outlets. Therefore, it is recommended to always carry cash Lecks, US dollars or euros. Today, the ratio of the euro and the Albanian lek is at about 1 to 137, and for one US dollar, 122 leks can be recovered. The Albanian currency to the ruble has a rate of 1 ALL = 0.51 RUB.

Finally

In conclusion, it should be noted that when planning a trip to Albania, it is better to take care in advance and purchase Albanian leks, and also take with you the euro or US dollars. Even if you do not get your local national currency in advance, you can always exchange the world's major monetary units for leks when you arrive in Albania. By the way, in this country the local population is very friendly towards Russian-speaking tourists.