AI overview
The Lithuanian litas was the official money used in Lithuania before the country switched to the euro in 2015. It matters historically because it represented Lithuania's financial independence during the period when it was a separate nation with its own monetary system.
AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.
Article
The Lithuanian litas (ISO 4217 code: LTL, symbolized as Lt; plural litai (nominative) or litų (genitive) was the currency of Lithuania, until 1 January 2015, when it was replaced by the euro. It was divided into 100 centų (genitive case; singular centas, nominative plural centai). The litas was first introduced on 2 October 1922 after World War I, when Lithuania declared independence, and was reintroduced on 25 June 1993 following a period of currency exchange from the Soviet ruble to the litas with the temporary talonas then in place. The name was modeled after the name of the country (similar to Latvia and its lats). From 1994 to 2002, the litas was pegged to the U.S. dollar at the rate of 4 to 1. The litas was pegged to the euro at the rate of 3.4528 to 1 since 2002. The euro was expected to replace the litas by 1 January 2007, but persistent high inflation and the economic crisis delayed the switch.
On 1 January 2015, the litas was switched to the euro at the rate of LTL 3.4528 to 1. Nevertheless, coins and banknotes of the second litas will be exchanged indefinitely into euros by the Bank of Lithuania.