Catalog
2 Lek
| Issuer | Banka e Shtetit Shqiptar (State Bank of Albania) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1950 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Old lek (1926-1965) |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Blue letterpress text on green guilloche underprint; the issuer's name 'BANKA E SHTETIT SHQIPTAR' is printed across the top, with the exchange certificate's conditions of use inscribed below in smaller text. The denomination '2' appears in the upper and lower right corners, with 'Buona Lek 2' set apart to the right, and a serial number prefixed by 'No' at lower left. Two manuscript signatures appear centrally above the date 'Korrik 1950' at bottom left. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | 2 BANKA E SHTETIT SHQIPTAR E vlefslime vetëm për dyqanine N T. Sh. shitje mallrave me Ar e Valute "Tregvar. Buona Lek 2 Dorëzoni paraqitësit mallna për vleftën (Lek Dy) me çmimet e veçanta të shkëmbimit me valute DREJTOR' I PER SHEF I ARK. TË THES. Korrik 1950. (Translation: State Bank of Albania. Valid only for the N.T.Sh. shop for the sale of goods for gold or foreign currency. Voucher Lek 2. Deliver goods to the presenter for the value (two lek) at special exchange rates for foreign currency. General director, chief of treasury section. July 1950.) |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Log in to see details |
| Protection description | Log in to see details |
| Variants | Log in to see details |
| Comments |
The 1950 Albanian currency reform was a hard reset — the new lek replaced the old at a rate of 5:1, wiping out accumulated wartime and occupation-era inflation in a single administrative stroke. This note is a product of that reform, issued under the communist government that had consolidated power by 1946. The Soviet-aligned regime standardized Albanian banking through the newly restructured Banka e Shtetit Shqiptar, replacing the earlier Banka Kombëtare e Shqipërisë.
The series was printed in the Soviet Union, reflecting Albania's tight political orbit at the time — an arrangement that would collapse entirely after the Sino-Soviet split, when Tirana pivoted sharply toward Beijing.