Romanian Leu

The currency of Romania is the Romanian Leu (plural: Lei), denoted by the code RON. The Romanian Leu is subdivided into 100 Bani (singular: Ban), and there are coins of 1, 5, 10, 25 and 50 Bani, and 1 and 2 Lei, and notes of 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 and 200 Lei. The National Bank of Romania has the exclusive right to issue Romanian currency. The Lei was introduced in 1867, when Romania was under Ottoman rule. The Lei replaced the Turkish Lira at par. The first Lei was a gold coin weighing 4.4g, with a purity of 917.5‰. The Lei was pegged to the French Franc from 1867 to 1922, and then to the Gold Standard until the outbreak of World War II. After the war, the Lei was pegged to the US Dollar at a rate of 1 Lei = 1 Dollar. The Lei was re-denominated in 2005, with 1 New Lei = 10,000 Old Lei. The new coins were introduced in denominations of 1, 5, 10 and 50 Bani, and 1 and 2 Lei, and the new notes were introduced in denominations of 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 and 200 Lei. The National Bank of Romania is responsible for ensuring the stability of the Romanian currency, and for issuing and circulating currency. The Bank also holds the country's foreign exchange reserves, and manages the exchange rate of the Lei against foreign currencies.