Moldova – Eastern European Banknote History

Moldova is a small country located in Eastern Europe. Its influential neighbors and strategic location has given it quite a story to tell. For example, their official language is Romanian just like their neighbor Romania. Other interesting tidbits about Moldova is that it was once disputed by the Ottomans and it also had very strong ties to Russia. It was eventually annexed by the USSR and gained its independence after the fall of the Soviet Union.

Banknote History In Moldova

The Leu is the official currency of Moldova. It shares the same name as Romanian’s currency which is also called the Leu. However both currencies share no other relations nor are they pegged to one another. The first series of Moldova Leu began to circulate in the early 90’s. Many of the first series of banknotes still maintain the same design today. They just have updated security features to fight counterfeiting. For example the 5 Lei, 1993 is colored in blue and it features Stephen the Great. Stephen is known and renowned for resisting Ottoman advances during the time of his rule. On the right hand side is an image of the Moldovan coat of arms.

In 1994 the series of banknotes that will circulate up until now. They feature Stephen the Great on the front on all denominations. There is also an image of the Moldova coat of arms. On the reverse is an image of national sites and monuments. The 500 Leu, 2015 shares the same obverse design and on the reverse is an image of the Cathedral of Chișinău. The denominations range from 1 to 1,000 Leu. There are 3 different denominations of the Leu, one was released 1994, 2010, 2015.