50 Lei

Romania was among the early adopters of polymer substrate for its entire circulating note series, switching over in 1999 following the Australian model developed by the Reserve Bank of Australia and Note Printing Australia. The 50 Lei denomination entered circulation after the massive redenomination of July 2005, which lopped four zeroes off the old leu — the old 500,000 Lei note became this single 50 Lei piece.

Polymer notes from this series are known to develop stress fractures along fold lines in high-circulation conditions, a recurring complaint from Romanian retailers during the mid-2000s. The print contract ran through Note Printing Australia for the substrate, with finishing handled domestically.