1 Stotinka – Bulgaria

In 1901, Bulgaria’s currency situation was defined by its complex position within the Ottoman monetary legacy and its aspirations for modern European statehood. Officially, the country was on a bimetallic standard (gold and silver) as per the 1880 currency law, with the Lev (plural: Leva) as the unit. However, the reality was a chaotic circulation of diverse metallic coins. Alongside the limited domestic silver and copper coins, a plethora of foreign gold and silver coins—Ottoman, Russian, French, Italian, and Austrian—were legal tender, creating a cumbersome system of daily exchange calculations.

This monetary fragmentation posed significant problems for trade and state finance. The instability of global silver prices in the late 19th century, which had caused the value of silver-based currencies to fall against gold, particularly affected Bulgaria. To stabilize the economy and attract foreign investment for crucial infrastructure projects, the government, under Finance Minister Ivan Geshov, was actively pursuing a decisive shift to the gold standard. This move was seen as essential for securing Bulgaria’s credibility in international capital markets and simplifying both internal commerce and external debt servicing.

Consequently, 1901 was a pivotal year of preparation within this multi-year transition. The government was accumulating gold reserves and finalizing plans for a major currency reform, which would culminate in the Currency Act of 1906. The key objective was to define the Lev as a fixed quantity of gold and to introduce new, unified national gold coins, thereby replacing the jumble of foreign specie. Thus, the currency situation in 1901 was one of lingering Ottoman-era disorder, actively being managed toward a modern, gold-backed monetary system intended to anchor Bulgaria’s economic sovereignty and European integration.