Albanian Lek

The Lek is the official currency of Albania. The lek was named after Alexander the Great III, whose name is often shortened to Leka in Albanian. Alexander’s portrait appeared on the obverse of the 1 lek coin, while the reverse showed him on his horse.
It is subdivided into 100 „qindarka“, although qindarka are no longer issued. The name qindarka comes from the Albanian „qind“ menaing one hunderd.
Before the First World War the Ottoman Turkish piastre was in full circulation, but following the military occupation of the country by various continental powers the gold franc ( Franc Germinal ) was adopted as the monetary unit.
The lek was introduced as the first Albanian currency in February 1926. A second series of notes was issued in 1976 when the country changed its name to the People’s Socialist Republic. 500 leke notes were introduced on 28 June 1991, followed by denominations of 200 and 1000 leke on 1 October 1992.
Currently, the banknotes come in the denominations of 200, 500, 1000 and 5,000 lek and coins in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 lek.