1 Lat (1 Ls = 100 santims)
The Lat is freely convertible currency. The exchange rate set by the Bank of Latvia on
1 January 2005: 1 EUR = 0.7028 Ls
The national currency - the lats - was introduced in 1993. You can get 5-, 10-, 20-, 50-, 100- and 500- lats banknotes,
and 1-, 2-, 5-, 10-, 20-, 50- santims and 1- and 2- lats.
Most Latvian banks are open from 9:00 AM until 5:00 PM on weekdays, while some are also open on Saturday mornings.
www.bank.lv
Credit cards can be used in Latvia, and the most common ones are VISA International, Euro card and MasterCard. Less commonly found are American Express, Diner’s Club and Eurocheque. All of the aforementioned cards can be used to withdraw cash advances from ATMs.