Balgarska Narodna Banka (Bulgarian National Bank — BNB)

The Balgarska Narodna Banka (BNB — Bulgarian National Bank) is Bulgaria's central bank, established in 1879 and headquartered at 1 Knyaz Alexander I Square in the heart of Sofia's Sredets district. BNB is responsible for monetary policy implementation through Bulgaria's Currency Board Arrangement (which pegs the Bulgarian Lev to the Euro at a fixed rate of 1 EUR = 1.95583 BGN), banking supervision, ensuring the stability of the financial system, and issuing Bulgarian banknotes and coins. With approximately 800 employees, BNB supervises all commercial banks in Bulgaria under the Zakon za kreditnite institutsi (Credit Institutions Act) and enforces prudential requirements aligned with EU banking directives (CRD/CRR). Bulgaria is in the process of adopting the Euro and joined the Exchange Rate Mechanism II (ERM II) in July 2020 and the Banking Union's close cooperation with the ECB Single Supervisory Mechanism. BNB's legal department drafts regulatory ordinances, advises on compliance with EU financial law, manages international legal relations including with the ECB, the European Banking Authority (EBA), and the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), and represents the bank in litigation before the Supreme Administrative Court (Varhoven administrativen sad).