Romania's 1993 coinage reform was driven by the catastrophic inflation following the fall of Ceaușescu's government — by 1993, the leu had lost the majority of its purchasing power within just three years. This pattern was produced as the National Bank evaluated cheaper base-metal compositions to replace the aluminum coins that had become nearly worthless in real terms. Copper-plated steel offered a production cost that aluminum no longer justified once the denomination itself had collapsed in value.
Romania's 1993 coinage reform was driven by the catastrophic inflation following the fall of Ceaușescu's government — by 1993, the leu had lost the majority of its purchasing power within just three years. This pattern was produced as the National Bank evaluated cheaper base-metal compositions to replace the aluminum coins that had become nearly worthless in real terms. Copper-plated steel offered a production cost that aluminum no longer justified once the denomination itself had collapsed in value.