Every Saturday until the end of the month, the cash desks of the BNB and the "Cash Services Company" will work overtime, the central bank announced.
The reason is the increased number of clients exchanging banknotes and coins from levs into euros. This Saturday, some bank branches in large cities will also be open.
The Bulgarian National Bank is exchanging levs into euros indefinitely and free of charge, and commercial banks and Bulgarian Post Offices are exchanging levs into euros until June 30 this year.
The lev remains an official means of payment until the end of January. All this means that there is no need to queue in front of banks in the first month of the year. If we still need euros in cash, we can get it by withdrawing from an ATM.
Merchants are required to accept leva until the end of January, and the change must be returned to us in euros, unless they do not have enough cash. Everything else is against the law.
Some of the branches of commercial banks will be open this Saturday to accommodate the flow of customers wishing to exchange their leva cash for euros. Banks do not have the right to return a customer, even if they do not have an account at the specific commercial bank. However, they do have the right to request information about the origin of the funds.
It is recommended that we deposit our leva cash into our own bank account at one or more banks of our choice. Card payments make shopping easier for both us as customers and for merchants who have POS terminals.
Details about the extra working hours and addresses can be found on the official website of the Bulgarian National Bank if we want to go to the cash desks of the Central Bank or the "Cash Services Company". It is also advisable to find out about the working hours of the offices of commercial banks.