Over 2,000 offices of "Bulgarian Post" throughout the country will become exchange points for levs into euros when Bulgaria officially adopts the single European currency. This will be of particular importance for residents of small settlements where there are no bank branches, NOVA reports.
Residents of villages already have experience with the euro, but are still not aware of the specific details of the exchange. Violeta Pencheva from the village of Lipnitsa in the Moesia region says that she would be able to exchange Bulgarian leva for European currency, but she does not know at what rate the banknotes and coins will be exchanged.
"For now, it can only be exchanged in Moesia, as well as in nearby towns", says Violeta.
The situation is similar in other small settlements. Nadezhda Radulova from the village of Mramoren in the Vratsa region claims that she is interested in the upcoming introduction of the euro and knows that the exchange will also take place at the post office. She has worked in Italy for a long time and is well acquainted with the common European currency, but she also does not have any leva in cash that she will need to exchange.
It is interesting that despite following the topic, Nadezhda is not aware that pensions will also be paid in euros after the adoption of the single currency.
From "Bulgarian Posts" indicate that they are currently in the preliminary preparation stage for the upcoming new service. The regional post office in Vratsa specifies that they will probably be ready on the date set for the purpose and will start exchanging currency.
"This is the most used working time for pensioners, because they get up in the morning, go for bread, go through the post office, finish their work and go home at lunch, but if necessary, I assume that the management will change the working hours of the small stations as well", explains Malinka Mihaylova from the regional post office.
An important moment for the successful transformation of post offices into exchange points is the training of employees, which has not yet started. It is expected to begin after a specific date for the adoption of the euro by Bulgaria is set.
For many people in small settlements, this service may not be of primary importance, since a large part of them do not have significant amounts of leva in cash. However, ensuring easy access to currency exchange in remote areas is an important step in the transition process to the euro.